Duet between the woman and a violin, symbolizing her daughter.

In a series of micro-vignettes, we witness a love affair from meeting to first date, falling in love to falling out of love, and into old age.

Jackie realizes that her sherpa has died.

Westerner Jackie and sherpa Pasang summit Everest without using oxygen cannisters. Soon their victory turns into a culture clash as they argue about their affair and the mountain, and slowly die of hypoxia.

Stephanie is getting ready to go out on a date, but she begins to unravel when she checks herself in the mirror. The voices she hears in her head are variations of her own critical voice. She sees herself the way she imagines her date will see her.

The 1947 Partition of India forces two children to say goodbye. One departs for Pakistan, leaving her pet rabbit and childhood treasures with her friend.

Jaan, who is dying, asks her sister Noor to secretely take her place on her wedding day. Noor reluctantly agrees.

Jaan meets group of tribal women in the desert who convince her to stay with them while she dies. Noor takes Jaan's place in the circle.

Jaan remains alive. The tribal women suggest she should write to Noor to know what has happen and ease her mind.

In a letter, Jaan asks if Noor still loves her.

Sofiya and Yuri take their infant daughter Oksana to have her horoscope read by Asa, who predicts that "freedom invades her future."

Though others are at first suspicious, Russian Konstantin convinces Ukranian teenagers Nataliya and Oksana to come work for him at a hotel in Romania for the summer.

Sofiya goes to Asa to have her cards read for news of Oksana. The police will not treat Oksana's disappearance as crime, as she went with the men willingly. The cards say Oksana has been robbed of her soul.

In Greece at a bar, three women are held captive: Konstantin sends Lyubia with a businessman, Natalyia with the Immigration officer who cuts her, and Oksana is bought by Konstantin at auction. Konstantin then offers to the crowd a gang rape just as the police arrive to raid the bar. Instead, he escapes with Oksana and Natalyia.

Pavlo checks in with Sofyia and Yuri for news; Sofiya and Yuri argue & blame each other for letting Oksana go.

On the Albanian coast the women captives wait for the boat to Italy. Oksana is still defiant, trying to figure out an escape for herself and others. The boat and Konstantin arrive, and Oksana fails to convince him to free her and Natalyia.

Brindisi refugee shelter: Father Alexander and social worker Clara work with the refugees. An injured Oksana arrives and asks for help; Lyubia, who escaped when the boat docked, is among the refugees and recognizes Oksana.

Asa and Sofiya are checking the cards. Pavlo arrives with the news that a priest called from Italy to say that Oksana is alive, but there is no sign of Natalyia.

Father Alexander and Oksana realize they share an attraction for each other, but Oksana is determined to go home and tell her parents what has happened. Konstantin phones the refuge to get Oksana back.

Refugees are trying on clothes, when Dima and Konstantin enter looking for Oksana. Konstantin offers Father Alexander money for Oksana and Clara calls the police; Konstantin and Dima leave before the police arrive.

Pavlo reads Oksana's letter to her parents telling them she'll be home on November 8, her birthday. They are thrilled, and get carried away planning a party for her.

On the eve of Oksana's departure, Father Alexander has to go to pick up another woman in distress. He leaves his knife with Oksana because she is afraid Konstantin will show up. Lyuba and Oksana say their goodbyes.

Konstantin breaks into Oksana's room and tries to convince her to leave with him. When this fails, he tries to rape her again but she stabs him. He gets the knife and stabs her before he dies. Father Alexander returns and Oksana dies of her wound, dreaming of home.

Sofiya and Yuri consult Asa when Oksana has not arrived as her lettered promised. They are interrupted by Pavlo with news that the priest from Italy is on the phone, and wants to talk to Oksana's parents.

A couple argue: Keith is trying to interrupt Erica's rant.

At a bar, Erica laments the men she chooses. Jackie looks for a rich man- and a rich man walks into the bar.

Keith tells Erica he has taken a vow of chastity to become a priest, but Erica still tries to seduce him.

Erica is angry with Keith for having an anxiety attack as they host a party together.

Erica and Keith have an awkward meeting in a cafe.

Two couples on a resort patio watch and comment on each other.

Miners crack open a mountain and two green children emerge. They sing, then the minors pray to them as they fall asleep.

Having escaped forced confinment in a basement, a girl approaches a stranger. She asks if the stranger knows her, as she tries to remember her past.

A middle-aged couple's romantic night: the Man, reading poetry to the Woman, is distracted by the need to hunt down a mosquito in the room.

A bar manager recounts the night she heard Frederick Chopin play piano, and the effect it had on her relationship with the bar’s resident piano player.

On the wedding day of the young couple from the first scene, the now-sober old man arrives with a surprise: his wife. And they want their ring back.

A woman cryptically remembers her past as she is briefly examined by three different people.

Shanawdithit, dying, speaks to her ancestors. She is ready to leave this world.

Shanawdithit reprimands Cormack for his saviour complex.

Cormack’s study in St. John’s, now Shanawdithit’s room. “Nancy April” reveals she can speak English quite well, and tells Cormack her real name: Shanawdithit. Cormack asks her where the rest of her people are, where her home is. Shanawdithit says simply: they are no more. Shanawdithit reflects on the loss of her people and the taking of her aunt...

The taking of Demasduit weighs heavy on Shanawdithit’s heart. Cormack, unsure of what to do, tries to comfort her, saying Demasduit was treated well. Shawnadithit asks if white people actually care about her people, her story, because Cormack’s words are betrayed by the actions of his fellows, and indeed, his own. Cormack insists he will ensure ...

Shanawdithit describes the last days of her family as they were pushed from their land and then hunted. She asks Cormack not to speak of their death, but of their life. Cormack is ecstatic and gets lost in the memories Shanawdithit paints. She breaks his reverie with the cold fact that the life she speaks of will never happen again. She collapse...

Cormack tries to raise funds for Shanawdithit’s care without success. James Simms offers to care for her while Cormack is away.

Her health fading, Shanawdithit wonders if she’ll be welcomed into the spirit world after so much time with the colonists. Cormack tells her he must leave, and Shanawdithit gives him a sketch of his house to carry with him. He leaves the room to pack. Shanawdithit hears the spirits of her people calling her name. It is time. One spirit in partic...

Excited by the possibility of a night with a new lover, Sumana anxiously expresses her anticipation.

Agnieska and Sumana share an intimate night together after meeting in a bar. Memories of past lovers almost make Agnieska give up on this new love, but Sumana convinces her to hold on to hope.

Waking early, Agnieska admires her new lover Sumana as she is sleeping. When Sumana wakes, the couple share an intimate conversation and eventually descend into fits of laughter.

Thomas and Claire meet at a party and fall in love.

Thomas and Lise sing of feeling the burning of two suns on their faces.

Thomas has brought Lise to become Hope's tutor, but Hope has grown up and wants to leave the house. Lise warns her not to give her love away to just anyone.

Late at night, Allie receives a visitation from her deceased best friend, Karen.

In the Blue Room of the Quebec National Assembly, Denis Lortie kills and wounds people with a submachine gun as a protest against Quebec sovereignty.

The Queen of the Amazon Ants laments the fallen state of her realm to her lone remaining subject.  She decides she must find a mate.

A teacher tries to inspire and distract a student as soldiers march outside their classroom, but the student is unable to escape into her imagination.

After a painful argument, a mother tells her son the truth of his father's absence and tries to comfort him.

Akakiy reveals his fascination with numbers, and the chorus announces they’ll help keep track of things. His landlady enters to bring him some cabbage soup- and something more, which he refuses.

Petrovich declares Akakiy’s coat is completely unfixable, but also that this is the chance for Akakiy to choose something new. Of course, he’ll have to pay.

Akakiy gets caught in rush hour and arrives late to find the head the department telling a sad story about encountering a homeless vagrant. Annoyed at being interrupted, the head of the department grills Akakiy on his little notebook of numbers. Akakiy explains he was using it to find ways to save money, which gives the head an idea. He’ll cut c...

Measuring Akakiy becomes a ballet of awkwardness. Petrovich and his wife muse on what really makes a man: how he appears.

The name day party. Everyone is dressed to the nines, but Akakiy adds up to at least an eleven. They fawn over his coat, going so far as to toast to it. Akakiy forgets to count his drinks, and ends up completely drunk. He gets lost on the way home, winding up in the rough part of town. Akakiy asks two men for directions, but instead, they knock ...

After days of near catatonia in his cold apartment, the landlady asks Petrovich to repair Akakiy’s old coat, to no avail. Even his coworkers arrive to check in, but by then, Akakiy is unreachable. Akakiy is committed to a mental hospital. Once he arrives, the other residents encourage him to look at things a little differently. It turns out he h...

In the afterlife, Henry Ford invites Robertson to present his screwdriver.

In the afterlife, Henry Ford invites Robertson to present his screwdriver. Ford is rapturously impressed, and offers Roberston a deal - but with the catch that Ford would then own the rights to his invention (as Ford puts it, he demands "complete submission"). Phillips reveals himself and makes a sales pitch. Ford is less attracted, but offers t...

Ford and Phillips celebrate while Robertson is chagrined and depressed by his failure to get the contract. Amalia finally finds the screwdriver aisle in the store.

Phillips realizes he will not get rich in his deal with Ford, but Ford will.

All sing the praises of the Robertson screwdriver.

In pain after being raped by Tassi, Artemisia tries to understand what just happened, while Tassi justifies himself.

Raoul and Allegra go out on their date and order a feast. The bill arrives and Raoul cannot pay it. He tries to escape, but in the process stabs the waiter in the neck with a fork. Raoul and Allegra leave the restaurant, Allegra is unaware of what has just happened.

Raoul goes to see Don Paulo for a loan. Before he approves, Don Paulo warns Raoul about a shadow that haunts people who have not paid their debts.

The Shadow arrives to haunt Raoul.

The Shadow arrives and tells Allegra the truth about Hernando/Raoul.

Raoul, as Hernando, arrives at Allegra's balcony but sees her with The Shadow.

Raoul attacks and kills The Shadow.

Two women watch and worry as the church elder walks through town with a telegram carrying news of a soldier son's death.

At a restaurant, a man flirts with a woman he thinks he recognizes. She is emotionally frank with him, but it turns out she isn't who he thinks she is.

Traumatized by her experiences, Alessandra reflects on her work as a translator in an American military prison.

2003: After leaking torture photos to the internet, American army translator Alessandra Jenson refuses to be hushed up, and live streams her suicide in protest.

Irish pirate Chieftain Grace O'Malley sneaks into the bedroom of Queen Elizabeth I of England, and convinces the Queen to give her back her ship and free her lover. In return Grace will attend the Queen's birthday celebration and cause a sensation - which delights Liz.

Drag performer Charlie sings a number in the persona of the Virgin Mary.

The Virgin Mary explains to Charlie why he has been chosen to carry the child of God.

Charlie sings gently to his child, the Messiah, who he has been chosen to bear.

In his dressing room, drag performer Charlie puts on his Virgin Mary costume, witnessed by the real Virgin Mary inside his mirror.

Charlie performs the first number of his act: Mother Mary in the nativity scene, with the worries of a new mother carrying the son of god.

In his dressing room, Mother Mary explains to Charlie that he is pregnant with the son of god and offers him tips from her experience. Eventually, Charlie accepts that he will be a parent, and vows to protect the new messiah.

On the first warm spring day in the mountains, Olaf, a rich farmer, proposes to Runa, a poor farmer, only to discover that she is in love with the bandit Davith. Angered by this, Olaf burns down Runa's farm, and Runa escapes up the mountain searching for Davith.

A night out celebrating midterms takes a turn when one student doesn't return.

A Gardener, lost in the wilderness, ends up at Madonna's cabin. She recognizes him as the man in her dreams and vows to heal him of his grief.

Chloe and Eddie are in the throes of love when they’re interrupted by Matt, Chloe’s athlete ex-husband. Matt asks where their daughter Ava is, and criticizes Chloe for abandoning Ava for a man.

A young Chinese/Canadian woman (Xiao Lian) faces a difficult choice: Honour her family’s traditional past or embrace a more modern future. Her father dwells on the memory of his deceased wife and honours her by performing the Qingming funeral tradition. Meanwhile, Xiao Lian’s two friends want her to get out and be more social. Her father objects...

Xiao Lian’s father bitterly reveals that he will die soon. Xiao Lian’s mother appears in spirit form and asks her to forgive her father. She speaks of their happiness together as a family in earlier times. As a child, Xiao Lian had a close connection with the Dragon Boat Festival, known as Duanwu and its hero, the ancient poet Qu Yuan. Her Fathe...

Xiao Lian is transported back to the ancient royal court, where she witnesses the majestic entrance of King Huai of Chu. Qu Yuan is at the peak of his power but is soon outfoxed by rival minister Zhang Yi. Qu Yuan is cast down and banished by his beloved king.

Years later, Qu Yuan has earned the honour and respect of the people in a little fishing village on the river Miluo. Xiao Lian and a local villager strike up a conversation with Qu Yuan, and it is soon revealed that The Kingdom of Chu has been destroyed by its enemies. After learning this news, Qu Yuan’s heart breaks, and he drowns himself in th...

Xiao Lian performs the Qingming ceremony to honour the spirit of her departed father and mother. Love and fellowship combine in the running of a dragon boat race. Xiao Lian joins her friends and crosses into her future.

The combined spirits of Qu Yuan and Father return and ask the audience to release them from their servitude. That freedom granted, they ascend into the heavens triumphantly.

The Mother appears at the window.  She shares memories, loving praise and admonishments.  The development of her child's talent and success has been her life's focus.

Glenn is lost in a painful memory of The Mother in hospital.

The Girl calls out to Glenn.  She asks him for help with a piece of music.

The performer sings a poem by Aphra Behn (1640-1689) about an androgynous queer lover.

La Maupin introduces herself to the audience, sharing some of the gossip that has been spread about her.

Maupin tells the story of a scandalous love affair from her youth, culminating in a daring escape from a convent.

Maupin takes to the stage of the Paris Opéra.