Ruritanian power struggle with opera singing.

Sylva Varescu is an operetta singer performing Kálmán's Die Czardasfürstin through Europe with great success. Before going to Vienna she meets handsome Prinz Weylerstein and they fall in love. Offered a contract for America, she doubts until she finds out that he is already engaged to a countess.

Journeyman craftsman Paul Paulsen is in his third year of traveling and lives far from his North German homeland in a small village in Central Germany. During a winter storm, he sees a young woman near his door, demanding entry to the prison, but being turned away by the warden. Paul follows the woman and takes her to his landlady's apartment. He recognizes her as Lisei, the daughter of a puppeteer, whom he had met twelve years earlier. He looks back.

Officials and royalty flock to a popular tavern on the Polish-Russian border,the lady owner scours the visitors for a prospect to marry off to her unwed daughter.

Christof Peleikis is a seasoned sailor who once served as a helmsman on many ships. Since having a wife and child, he works as a fisherman and lives in a small village. When a ship gets into trouble off the coast one day, Christof rushes to its aid. He manages to save the ship and its crew, but one of the helmsmen is killed. Christof is eventually persuaded by the alluring captain's wife, Evelyn, to take the man's place. Without saying goodbye to his family, he sets sail...

On the eve of the Russian Revolution, a performance of "Tosca" is taking place at the opera house. The artists and staff are too engrossed in their work to notice the unrest in the streets. The leading roles are played by Marina Marta and René Areno, who are also lovers. However, Marina has another admirer in Captain Alexander von Harbin. When, during the final performance, the insurgent communists suddenly storm the opera house, Alexander seems to be Marina's last hope…

The artist Hansen and his wife have separated due to professional stubbornness, even though they love each other. The animals behave more sensibly: Hansen’s trained monkeys bring the couple back together. People and animals work together to create a sensation.