"Act II" showcases the idiosyncratic beauty of the singer/actress as she awaits the beginning of Act II in the wings, conserving her energy in the quiet of backstage, for the soon to return audience. Her pose, loose limbed and not particularly ladylike, is at interesting odds with the fluff and feather of her 1950s costume, which gives the painting its nickname, "Red Dress."

I like the subject of the unseen life of performers backstage, between the moments of putting on their show, Another in this series is "Entr'acte" which shows an actress (in this case my wife) touching up her makeup in the over crowded dressing room of Gaslight Theater in Hallowell, Maine.