This biographical story of Puccini (Gabriele Ferzetti) spans his creative life from early student days to the height of success, including his early flop Madame Butterfly and his incomplete Turandot. Along the way he encounters three women who change his life, including a sexy, beautiful singer (Nadia Gray) whom he drops for a small town girl (Märta Torén), and a servant girl who commits suicide over him.