Cape Verde, 1964. At the feet of a mighty volcano, the traditional Cape Verdean society is undergoing a steady change. The old land-owning aristocracy is disintegrating. A class of "mulattos" begins to emerge, with a trade-based financial power that threatens the landlords. A new identity arises, a mix of old and new, of African and Portuguese culture, sensual and dynamic. The songs of Cesária Évora follow this inevitable transformation. From the novel by Henrique Teixeira de Sousa.

Vanessa inherits an old Portuguese Revue theatre after the death of a distant aunt. Her agent, Tozé Leal, tries to convince her to sell it, but she decides to restore it to its former glory with the help of her friends Joana and Ribeiro. But her dream will not be easy to achieve: Armando, the owner of a neighbouring theatre, will do everything he can to stop Vanessa.