Pasha Aboul-Assan XIV, consumed by profound boredom after exhausting every conceivable pleasure, is now, despite all the efforts of his odalisques and courtiers, nothing more than a pathetic, neurasthenic wreck. Meanwhile, word spreads that the famous dancer, Miss Tinguett, is touring the country with a traveling circus. Captivated by the posters featuring the charming artist, Aboul-Assan's ministers decide to hire the ballerina to entertain their royal master. Unfortunately, the dancer, weary of a life of misery with a troupe unworthy of her talent, has just vanished without a trace. The circus director, unwilling to miss such a lucrative opportunity, entrusts the clown Gugusse with the delicate task of replacing the star who has broken her contract. Gugusse carries out his mission with such verve that the pasha ends up laughing.