Prologue

Colas drinks and introduces the series of reminiscences

Act One

In the vineyards, women are harvesting the grapes and singing (" Cherez lesh gustoy"). Colas and Selina exchange flirtatious insults, and when he leaves, she wishes he wouldn't let some teasing drive him off ("Noch i dien"). She falls asleep, and when Colas returns, he puts his arms around her. He turns to leave, but Gifflard, who wants Selina for himself, interrupts and provokes a quarrel. They are interrupted by the news that the Duke, with a troop of new soldiers, is returning. Outside the castle, the Duke obliviously wonders why his return seems to have frightened the townsfolk. Chamaille calls for music, and Mademoiselle de Termes, who has accompanied the Duke from Paris, notices Colas, who is in the ensemble, approvingly. She coyly asks him about his accomplishments, and he happily boasts that he can successfully turn his hand to nearly everything ("Vskapïvat, vspakhivat"), pointing out that he has sculpted the elegant fountain. She invites him into the Duke's castle to show her his other masterworks, as Selina watches jealously. She sings a ballad of a cowardly warrior ("Luga vechernye myagkt") and Gifflard takes the opportunity to denigrate Colas to her. When Colas swaggers back and invites her to dance, she refuses. Jacqueline, who is secretly in love with Colas, offers herself as a partner instead. Colas returns inside the castle, and annoyed by the sound of his playing and the flirtatious laugher she hears, Selina leaves with Gifflard.

Act Two

In Colas' workshop, much later, with Jacqueline and Colas married, though unhappily, with one grandchild, he and Robinet return to work on a sculpture of Selina. They are interrupted by the arrival of the Duke and Gifflard, and Colas hides the sculpture, but Gifflard uncovers it, and the Duke seizes it for his collection. Colas comforts himself with the thought that his masterwork will be kept safely, at least. Chamaille comes in, pursued by some angry parishioners, and he and Colas drink together, Colas performing a drinking song ("Za Provansom") and Jacqueline and Robinet singing as well. The light mood is interrupted by the sound of a Dies Irae being sung by mourners, who inform them that the Duke's soldiers have carried the plague back with them. Jacqueline and the others flee, taking the granddaughter with them, but Colas defies fate and stays. Later, he is ill and delirious, imagining his impending death ("Noch tianetsia"). He begins to dance, but falls to the ground, hallucinating the sight of stars and sound of music. Chamaille comes in, expecting to find him dead, but helps him revive with his bottle of wine. Robinet returns, reporting that the soldiers have burnt everything in the town, but he did manage to save Colas' wooden flute. Chamaille tries to prepare Colas for the news that both Jacqueline and his granddaughter were infected and are dying, and Colas determines to see them, though his heart is far more set on the little girl. The two of them found shelter in a stranger's house, and Jacqueline tells Colas she has always loved him and envied him his easygoing laughter. She is dying but their granddaughter is recovering, and when Jacqueline dies, Colas vows to take care of the child ("Slavnaya zverushka"). Outside her house, Selina and Colas encounter one another, and converse shyly. Selina breaks the awkwardness by demanding a kiss and telling him how she truly did love him ("Ya lyubila tebya"). He does not wish to repeat the past, and is skeptical about whether love would have lasted, and after another kiss, he leaves. However, when he hears that the Duke and Gifflard are continuing to tyrannize the town, he decides to confront them.

Act Three

From the castle, the Duke watches the completion of the burning of the town. Gifflard, still resentful of Colas, tells the Duke that Colas is leading an uprising, and in retaliation, they set out to destroy all his works. When Colas enters, he is dismayed to hear that even the sculpture of Selina has been smashed, but recovers his good humor, laughing and telling the Duke he will have his revenge on the feast day of St. Martin. In the next scene, the townsfolk are dancing and singing in honor of the saint, and the Duke and his guests make a grand appearance for the unveiling of Colas' sculpture detailing his proud achievements. The people sing of their city's beauty ("O slavny grad Clamsi") and the cloth covering the sculpture is ceremoniously lifted. The statue features the Duke in full regalia, but sitting backwards on a donkey. The Duke and his guests, furious and shocked, rush back into the castle, and Colas tells the laughing, exultant crowd his philosophy that the only flaw of human life is that it is too brief.

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