One fateful night in a small English regional theatre during World War II, a troupe of touring actors stage a production of Shakespeare's "King Lear." Bombs are falling, sirens are wailing, the curtain is up in an hour but the actor/manager "Sir" who is playing Lear is nowhere to be seen. His dresser "Norman" must scramble to keep the production alive but will Sir turn up in time? And if he does, will he be able to perform that night?

Now ensconced as artistic director of the New Burbage theatre festival, Geoffrey Tennant must stage the cursed play Macbeth to fulfill the vision of his deceased predecessor Oliver Welles. The actor cast in the lead engages in a titanic clash of egos with Geoffrey, while Oliver weighs in confrontationally from the grave. The festival faces a financial crisis that forces its CEO to engage in some risky business, while leading lady Ellen Fanshaw endures...