Waiting in the Wings

The reference photo was taken back stage at my granddaughter's first ballet recital. This photo, among several, was dark and a little blurry, but it made me think immediately of Degas. I put it aside for over a year and finally got it straight in my head how I wanted to approach it. Since I did not have permission from the parents of all the little girls I endeavored to not be too specific regarding their identities. They could be any little ballerinas. Mainly I wanted to capture all their varied emotions exhibited in their body language: from excitement to nervousness to fear and efforts to comfort.