Lillian Garson, a woman of noble English ancestry who is married to a commoner, has written a letter to her husband, ending their marriage.

Kulinyi, the theatre secretary in Budapest, becomes the director of a rural theatre. He takes with him a talented, budding theatre couple, Gábor Bálint and Éva Pap. He fights a hopeless battle with drunken and jaded actors, undemanding audiences, and demands the release of their untalented relatives with creditors. Finally, tired of failure, all three return to Pest. Kulinyi resumes his post as secretary. Gábor Bálint, out of options, approaches the famous actor Ferenc Tőrös and asks him to let him play the role for one night only, so that he can prove his talent.