Joachim 是一个生活在巴黎、事业成功的电视编剧。四十岁生日的临晨，他决定放弃一切——孩子、友人、敌人、爱情与遗憾——去美国从零开始。之后，他带领“新滑稽艳舞团”（New Burlesque ）回到故乡进行巡演。艳舞团团员因Joachim 而对法国巴黎充满向往。幽默的表演和脱衣舞娘丰满的身材令男女老少沉迷不已。尽管下榻的旅馆平庸不堪，使用的电梯音乐（musique d’ascenseur ）乏善可陈，又缺乏资金，女演员依然营造出了新奇、热情而欢乐的气氛。但是，他们决定在巴黎演出压轴戏，将巡演推向高潮的梦想破裂了：Joachim 的老“朋友”背叛了他，取消了其预定的演戏场所。巴黎之行似乎注定来去匆匆，过去种种伤感的回忆突然被揭开……　　Joachim, a former Parisian television producer had left everything behind - his children, friends, enemies, lovers and regrets to start a new life in America. But he returns with a team of New Burlesque strip-tease performers whom he has filled with romantic dreams of a tour of France, of Paris!　　Traveling from town to town, despite the cheap hotel rooms and lack of money, the curvaceous showgirls invent an extravagant fantasy world of warmth and hedonism that wins an enthusiastic response from men and women alike.　　But their dream of a tour culminating in a last grand show in Paris goes up in smoke when Joachim is betrayed by an old friend and loses the theatre where they were due to perform. An obligatory return journey to the capital violently reopens the old wounds of his past...

一位母亲决定在日出前开车离开自己的两个孩子和丈夫。母亲开始了一个人的旅行，在新的地方找了一份工作。而选择主动离开家庭的她从未真正放下过家人。她时刻关注着儿女的成长，甚至与丈夫“隔空对话”联系。丈夫将家照料得很好，女儿的钢琴演奏水平越发出色，儿子也加入了冰球队，少了她的家似乎仍延续着幸福与平静……

作品讲诉一名女演员(珍妮·巴利巴尔饰)为了在传记片中饰演歌手芭芭拉，而模仿角色的一举一动、一颦一笑，自我渐渐被角色吞噬。