Early autumn. A small lost in the steppes, interim railway station, of the Northern Caucasus railways line. The neighbouring collective farms have completed harvesting and autumn sowing and the people are happy to celebrate the end of fieldwork. Moreover, a team of actors from a metropolitan theatre are to arrive and participate in the Harvest Day Festival.

Among the people to welcome the guests there are some workers from the nearest collective farm “The Bright Stream” – Gavrilych, well advanced in years, but energetic, cheerful, a young milkmaid Galya and several lads with bunches of flowers. Here is as well a young agronomist, a student - probationer Petr and his pretty wife Zina. A married couple of summer cottage dwellers (Dachnik and Dachnitsa) are the last to come. They are an elderly man and a lady, not in her first youth, but desperately trying to look younger. Being tormented with boredom, they have come to stare at the metropolitan actors. Zina, thoughtful and pensive, in expectation of the guests reads a book. Her husband Petr tries in every possible way to distract her attention from the book. At last everyone, except Zina, goes to the platform.

The collective farmers together with the metropolitan actors appear. They are Accordionist, classical danceress, Ballerina, and her partner, Classical Dancer.

Zina calls the danceress by her name. Ballerina at once recognises her former ballet college mate. What an encounter! They turn out to have known each other for ages! The two girls used to go to the same ballet school in their teenage years. Later Zina married an agronomist Petr, and left for the country to work in a collective farm. No one knows now, that she used to be a dancer. Both women look at each other with curiosity.

“I bet you’ve forgotten how to dance!” - Ballerina says. Not at all, while living and working in the village Zina never forgets it and she is quick to prove it. They cheerfully begin to recollect their dancing classes competing each other. Old Gavrilych and Zina’s husband return. Zina introduces her husband to the danceress. Petr is so infatuated with this gorgeous, brilliant, remarkable lady that he immediately starts courting her. Zina experiences the first fits of jealousy.

The setting sun illuminates the bucolic scene of breathtaking beauty. In the well kept fields a camp of field workers of the kolkhoz “The Bright Stream” is seen. The team is extremely successful in completing the harvesting. They are in high spirits because tomorrow is a holiday devoted to the end of harvesting - the Harvest Day Festival. Everyone is cheerful. And here comes the team of actors. Gavrilych introduces them to the team of kolkhozniks. Both teams greet each other warmly. An improvised ceremony starts. The actors are sharing out the presents they have brought for the best noted collective farmers. Here is a gramophone specially meant for Gavrilych. Here is also a beautiful silk dress to be given to the best milkmaid.

The prizewinners are greeted with a storm of applause. Naturally the ceremony turns into dancing. Grey-haired, bearded “quality inspectors” are the first to start dancing.

The belated Dachnik and Dachnitsa turn up. They get involved in dancing too. For everybody’s fun they perform the old-fashioned Shakhon dance. The next to perform are the girls from Zina’s amateur dancing club. But everybody’s attention is distracted. The public wants the best milkmaid Galya to make a show of her new wonderful dress. She doesn’t mind. Galya starts dancing with a sprightly lad, Tractor-driver. The merry-making is in full swing.

Gavrilych appropriately makes use of the presented gramophone: he suggests that it’s the guests’ turn to show their skill. Although the guests don’t feel comfortable to dance in their casual clothes, they agree to keep the warm merry-making going. They enjoy their improvised dance in the picturesque autumn field. Everyone is impressed by their dance in his or her own way. The kolkhozniks are impressed by the dance itself. Dachnik and Dachnitsa are impressed by the performers of the dance - the husband admires Ballerina and the wife – Classical Dancer. And Zina is impressed by how quickly her husband Petr gets infatuated with Ballerina. Small wonder, his wife, a modest village Zina seems to him quite plain and unattractive. He can’t help comparing - the metropolitan guest danceress excels his wife in everything.

Accordionist and Galya are also invited to dance.

And then it’s time for Khubaners and Caucasians to come up with a dance. Their fiery sparkling dance takes everyone by storm. The merry-making gets its peak.

At last everyone is invited to have a snack. Meanwhile the elderly husband manages to secretly fix a date with Ballerina. His wife is no worse in fixing a date with Classical Dancer, without being noticed. While Petr is as simple as that: he is not a bit shy of openly flirting with Ballerina. Zina is completely upset to see her husband and her friend together. She is reduced to tears. The youngsters and Gavrilych try to comfort her. At this moment Ballerina returns and tries to convince her friend that they are no rivals and she is far from accepting Petr’s courting and flirting. She also insists that Zina should reveal her former profession to the friends. Zina agrees and both of them start dancing to everybody’s admiration. It occurs to the danceress to make a jest of Petr: all the rendezvous will be kept but the point is that there will be wrong people to keep them! Ballerina disguised as her partner will keep the appointment with Dachnitsa. Her partner masquerading as Ballerina will go to see Dachnik, the old rake As to Zina, she will turn up in front of her husband in Ballerina’s stage costume. The plot is merrily approved.

Warm Southern night. A meadow surrounded with bushes and trees. The young people have already gathered here. The belated Dachnik and Dachnitsa come. They are welcome warmly. Accordionist has set his eye on Galya; he is still impressed by her joyful dancing with him. He decides to fix a date with her. In a whisper he tells Galya that he will be back in no time and asks her to wait for him. The girl is taken aback. She doesn’t feel flattered at all.

Meanwhile, Dachnik, his wife and Petr remind their ”beloved ones” of the fixed rendezvous. It’s the last drop. The youngsters are more then ever determined to teach them a lesson.

They rush to change their clothes. For further fun Tractor-driver puts on the dog’s fell. At last they are ready to start. But at the last moment Galya reveals that she is also having a date with Accordionist. This unexpected news might ruin all the elaborate plans but Tractor-driver finds a brilliant solution: Galya will go to see Accordionist while his own role will be to scare the unlucky lover off. Now the plot is sure to work!

Galya is in waiting. “The dog” i.e. Tractor-driver, is nearby. Accordionist turns up. He is really puzzled at seeing the dog. He would rather prefer to get rid of it, still more to that, “the dog” barks furiously trying to attack him. Finally Accordionist realises that he is made a fool of. He enthusiastically joins the plotters to complete the practical joke.

With a bicycle by his side the elderly Dachnik approaches the place of the date. He is willing to look handsome and brave: he has his rifle, bandolier and spyglass on. He is trimmed with all those treasures in hope to look more manly. The prospect of having a date with a young metropolitan danceress makes him feel excited. Meanwhile, his wife happens to turn up at the same place, too. She is no less eager to look impressive and young, that is why she has her best classic high-heeled shoes on.

At last Dachnik sees his beautiful danceress, his sylf, shaping among the trees. It goes without saying that it is the disguised Ballerina’s partner, one of the plotters, but the old rake is too excited to be observant. Dachnitsa watches the couple with evident disapproval. Suddenly a strange creature appears approaches her - a dog on a bicycle. The lady is scared to death. As you easily guess, it’s Tractor-driver who does his best. Before long Ballerina, disguised as her partner to have a date with Dachnitsa, appears. But “the young man” is far from being amiable to the scared lady; “he” scoffs at her. Finally the two of them run away.

Then the young agronomist makes his appearance in the dating place. He expects to meet his new love and here she comes, his metropolitan ballet danceress. He is so much in love that fails to recognise in “the Ballerina” his plain commonplace wife. Zina flirts with him, teases him and disappears in the bushes.

Lyricism gives way to buffoonery. Dachnik together with Classical Dancer dressed as Ballerina comes running onto the stage.

The buffoonery gains in volume. “Romantic passion” reaches its highest voltage. Ballerina in her partner’s costume appears from behind the bushes. She shows every sign of outraged innocence and insists on the seducer being brought to book. A mock duel takes place. The disguised danceress is the first to shoot. Alas, a most vexatious misfire! The pistol goes to the elderly Dachnik. He trembles with fear, but nevertheless takes his aim. Here comes a thundering sound… the old man mistakes it for the sound of his own shot, which seemingly reached the aim. The miserable duellist rushes away from the battle field. The very moment he leaves, “the killed opponent” rises to her feet and joins in the merry-making. Actually the plotters by means of an empty bucket produced the sound of the loud shot. On coming back both Dachnik and Dachnitsa realise that they are made fools of. The practical joke is coming to a close.

The morning of the Harvest Day. A stage decorated for the Festival. The people take the seats in front of the stage. Everyone is impatiently waiting for the performance to begin.

Petr is also here to admire his beloved Ballerina, who he believes to have seen in the wood last night.

But to his amazement he sees two ballerinas on the stage. With their faces hidden behind masks, the two look perfectly alike. The dance is finished. The agronomist can’t control himself and rushes onto the stage. Removed are the masks. The puzzle is explained. The fooled and embarrassed Petr timidly asks his wife’s pardon for his misconduct. They are finally reconciled. To his pride the agronomist sees that his modest wife is no worse than the brilliant metropolitan Ballerina is. The collective-farm youth and old men together with the actors continue to celebrate the Harvest Day Festival.