The provincial town of S. froze in anticipation. And there is reason to hold your breath - a new theater is about to open, dispelling provincial boredom. But right in the middle of rehearsals, a murder occurs on stage. Assistant bailiff Konstantin Cherkasov begins a police investigation. His best friend, teacher Pavel Rudnev, is drawn into the cycle of events because of his reckless love for a young artist. But how to find a killer among actors for whom hiding true motives under the guise of other people's thoughts and desires is like second nature?