An electroluminescent (EL) display apparatus and method of control are provided. A display screen includes gate signal lines which intersect source signal lines. A pixel provided with an EL device corresponds to each intersection of the gate and source signal lines. A driving transistor is provided for each pixel to supply a current to the EL device. A first switch transistor is provided on a current path through which the current is supplied to the EL device. A gate driver circuit is connected to the gate signal lines. The gate driver circuit includes a shift register circuit, and outputs a select or non-select signal for the gate signal lines. The gate driver circuit turns the first switch transistor on and off to control a duty ratio of the display screen. The duty ratio is controlled by a start pulse fed to the shift register circuit.