A psychological portrait of Ewa, a young Polish theatre actress searching for her own way in life. She plays a minor role in Jasieński's 'The Ball of Mannequins', a complete opposite of her real personality, while aspires to star as Cordelia in Shakespeare's 'King Lear'. Ewa lives on her own, occasionally visiting a famous old actress to talk about theatre, taking care of a poor neighbor, and fights her sophisticated mother rejecting the truth about her beloved father, who died an alcoholic.