In this lushly furnished chamber piece, set against a wall covered by a Titian-like reproduction of the naked at play, a bitter (fully draped) lesbian romance is played out to the strains of Vivaldi and The Platters. It is the home of the fashion designer Petra von Kant (Margit Carstensen) and her slave/secretary/stylist, Marlene (Irm Hermann). Their comedy of bad manners is interrupted when Petra falls in love with a new model, the seemingly naive Karin (Hanna Schygulla), who comes from proletariat stock and who, as Petra’s mistress, becomes her master.