One of my favorite things to do is to read the Goings On section of the About Town page in the New Yorker. In this week’s issue, I came across the word soubrette in a description of an actor’s role in an Off Broadway play. Loving new words, I looked it up and discovered that there’s a long history of this character type in theater and opera. My favorite example is this job description, found in Americans for the Arts:

Typically, these roles don’t carry the emotional weight of a tragic heroine but instead bring energy, humor, and charm to the stage. Characters such as Zerlina in Mozart’s “Don Giovanni” and Despina in “Così fan tutte” are exemplary representations of the Soubrette role.

Just perfect for the new title of the reworked painting from 25 years ago.