The quiet life of an extended family is shaken up when a circus comes into town.

It's director Oberholzer's sixtieth birthday. His wife and daughter Anna receive the guests who are invited to the feast, with a dish of pike as the main course. But suddenly, the celebration turns sour at the appearance of an unexpected guest - namely Oberholzer's brother Alois, the black sheep of the family, who disappeared years ago. As it turns out, Alois has since changed his name to "Obolski" and become ringmaster of a major circus. Him and his wife Iduna quickly threaten the morals and standards of the bourgeois party, and they proceed to turn the boring proceedings into a turbulent circus show. Fortunately, after much confusion, the story ends happily - altough the pike has burned black in the oven!