The ageing actor Peter Poller, whose name still has traction, is engaged as a guest at a provincial theater. They are performing a play by Molière. Poller is an alcoholic and his physical collapse is only a matter of time. His colleagues are watching him: the fear that the performance could fail through his fault is coupled with envy of his star role, which he also plays in his private life. His old "friend" and rival, the actor Karl Tietz, lurks unsuspectingly for the opportunity to stand in fo...