Act I opens on a bustling New Orleans street, alive with the color and commotion of Mardi Gras preparations outside Café du Monde. Meet our four struggling bohemian artists: Rodolfo, a painter and designer; Marcello, his dearest friend and fellow artist; Colline, a street peddler hawking balloons, masks, and carnival trinkets; and Schaunard, who arrives on his beloved bicycle with his girlfriend in tow. Into their world sweeps the fiery Musetta, torn between her passionate affair with Marcello and the generous attentions of her wealthy, doting patron Alcindoro. Back in their shabby studio, the friends are interrupted by Benoit, their long-suffering landlord come to collect overdue rent, and what begins as dread turns into a night of mischief as the bohemians tease, trick, and send him packing.

Alone in the studio, Rodolfo answers a timid knock at his door and meets Mimi, a fragile young neighbor seeking a light for her candle as the power is out. In the flicker of the lantern, the two fall instantly and irrevocably in love, and hurry out to join the carnival. The Mardi Gras parade sweeps the stage in a dizzying pageant of butterflies, jesters, and towering puppets, culminating in the grand entrance of Musetta and Alcindoro costumed as the carnival’s Queen and King. Amid the splendor, a mysterious Fortuneteller and her minions read Mimi’s cards and foretell heartbreak, illness, and a storm on the horizon. As the revelry softens into a late-night tango, Rodolfo’s jealousy curdles the young romance, and Mimi flees in tears.