One night, Alfred Meyer, the director of a theater company, was almost pushed off a speeding train. However, his misadventures did not stop there. At a birthday party for his wife, actress Caroline Dacres, Meyer was killed by a blow from a bottle of champagne.Suspicion falls on all the friends and acquaintances of the deceased.The case takes place in New Zealand, where Inspector Alleyn, a clever, intellectual, art connoisseur, came on vacation with a touring troupe. He is characterized by distrust and skepticism, and hides his feelings and experiences under an external equanimity. At first, almost none of the actors are aware of his profession. But after the incident, the inspector has to reveal incognito to his New Zealand colleagues.Alleyn begins an investigation and gets acquainted with the actors of the theater – people who are bright and very contradictory, never taking off their masks.