A theatre. The curtain has just fallen on the last performance. In the wings, the actor returns to his dressing room. There, his mistress, who is also his leading lady, is waiting to give him a piece of her mind. They argue, and separate. To the great dismay of the dresser, who wants to catch the last train home, a host of people file through saying their adieus to the retiring actor. In their midst is Mr Maillard, a childhood friend whom the actor hasn't seen in thirty years. Maillard finds himself in an embarrassing situation: his niece, a young girl called Jacqueline, is hopelessly smitten with the actor. Behind an off-putting veneer, he ends up seducing her.