A grand gilded rococo arch, carved with floral and scroll details, frames the scene symmetrically, with heavy dark-red velvet curtains parted at center. Beyond them an empty stage floor runs toward a hazy vanishing point, where a pale moon glows above the fog-shrouded silhouette of a gothic town. Small candles cluster at the base of the stage on either side.

Cool moonlight and soft haze meet pockets of warm candle amber, giving the scene a theatrical, quietly eerie hush. Impasto and dry-brush strokes build the folds of the curtains and the burnished gold ornament, while the foggy sky is painted loosely and softly blurred in oil.