A young composer is suffocating in his social and family life. He dreams of leaving and starting his life over somewhere else... Jacques goes on a tour of the provinces with a ballet troupe who dance to his music. They live in hotel rooms, train compartments, and dressing rooms where the excited dancers liven up the atmosphere. The girls, among themselves, describe their problems, experiences and hopes in their crude, colorful language. He falls madly in love with one dancer who is as distraught as he is. Maybe this is a way to find happiness again. But the tour comes to an end... It was just a 'brief encounter'. At the Gare de Lyon, Michèle, his wife, is waiting for him. Jacques lets Catherine go..