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Since the 1830s, the opera houses, theatres and vaudeville shows had grown in number and importance in the new Paris. Artists were fascinated by famous cafés among which the Café des Ambassadeurs was one of the oldest that offered musical entertainment. In the Song of the Dog (La Chanson du Chien) our gaze is drawn past the singer to the auditorium and the lighted garden. The singer is Emma Valadon. Ironically concentrating on the singer's mimicry and gestures, Degas highlights the attentiveness with which the audience are following hr performance. The sheer visual wit of portraying the singer as she mimics the dog in her song is doubtless meant to underline the vulgarity of the song.
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