Harold May, an excellent Jewish-American tap dancer, on tour in Europe with his company, receives an offer from a German that is difficult to pass up: a large sum to put on a show in Berlin. The German does not know that Harold is of Jewish origins; the year is 1937 and, once they arrive in Germany, the company discovers that he will have to perform in the presence of Adolf Hitler.

A centennial beech tree takes the stage and vividly recounts its hundred-year life, sharing humorous, poignant, and sometimes tragic episodes that unfolded on and around it.