Lord Brockelhurst, his unwilling betrothed Lady Mary, his butler Crichton and scullery maid Tweeny are on Lord Loam's yacht which is wrecked leaving them all to cope on a desert island. Class distinctions fall apart for the time being.

A secret society holds a meeting to determine what to do about a powerful and dangerous man whom they have been studying closely for the past three months. They all agree that he deserves to die. Two of the members, Farallone and Forrest, are both in love with Lilith, the group's only female member. But Lilith accepts neither of them, preferring to devote herself to the group's cause. When the group meets again and deals cards to all the members, Forrest draws the ace of hearts, meaning that he will be the one to carry out the assassination. Lilith then suddenly agrees to marry him, in order to give him courage. But after their first night together, both of them begin to feel differently about what they have planned.

The orphan Dora is a favorite with everyone in the gold mining settlement where she lives, but her special favorite is Dandy Jack. When Jack tells her that he is leaving for a location farther north, feeling that the current location is almost at the end of its profitability, she wants to go with him. But Jack insists that the tearful Dora stay behind. Later, when a new miner begins to court her, she gradually overcomes her initial reluctance, but she never forgets Jack.

Jeff wants to get married to Virginia, but Virginia won't marry until her older, hard-to-please sister Angelica gets married off first. Jeff pretends that a shy, never-married nobody he has just met is really a great lover, in order to get Angelica interested in him.

The musical revolves around the antics of Mame Dennis, a fun-loving, wealthy eccentric with a flare for life and a razor sharp wit. Her life is suddenly changed when she becomes the guardian of her late brother's only child, Patrick Dennis. Her adventures take us from the speak-easies of the roaring 20's to the depression following the great Stock Market crash. She is rescued by a wealthy Southern plantation owner, marries and is widowed suddenly, and through it all, manages to keep things under control. With some help from her dearest friend, Vera Charles, she helps keep things at 3 Beekman Place a rousing free-for-all.