A transgender Polish Jew fights for her identity and survival in pre-war Poland and the Holocaust.

SYNOPSIS:

Roman Wilchek is a poor Jewish boy growing up in Krakow, Poland in the early 1930s. He and his only friend and protector, Teri, a tomboy Gentile, are enthralled by “Rivkele”, the Yiddish version of a popular tango. Roman likes to dress up in his older sister’s discarded dresses and lipstick as he and Teri sing and dance to the song. But he is caught by his parents and his dress wearing and his friendship with Teri are forbidden.

Roman secretly sees Teri to wear dresses and dance until 1938 when he turns 16 and must start military training. Distraught and confused over his identity, he slashes his wrists. Roman confesses his lifelong identification as a girl to his family and a doctor. The doctor advises his grieving parents that Teri put the idea in Roman’s head and his anxiety over the Army caused him to embrace it to escape service. They convince Roman of this and he sends Teri away. But he can’t shake his desire to be a girl and his parents’ intolerance of this drive him to run away to Warsaw.

In Warsaw he is befriended by Micki, a young transvestite prostitute who shares her flat with him. There Roman is finally free to be herself. She takes the name Rivkele and lives as a woman, joining Micki on the poorer streets in a dangerous struggle to survive.

An attack by a pimp causes Rivkele and Micki to flee into Warsaw’s wealthy nightclub district, forbidden to them. But Anatol Kor, a wealthy art dealer and Jew, rescues them. He introduces them to Warsaw’s gay night life, centered at the nightclub Ephebos. There they meet wealthy clients and live high. Alexsandr, the son of a cabinet minister and leading a closeted life, courts Rivkele, and they fall in love.

Polish fascists attack Rivkele and Micki outside Ephebos, killing Micki. Alexsandr, fearing scandal, flees. Rivkele, hospitalized, is found to be male and AWOL from military service. The Germans attack Poland and in the confusion Anatol hides her in the Jewish ghetto, joining her when his townhouse is confiscated by the Germans.

The Germans wall in the ghetto and begin deportations to Treblinka. Anatol gives his life creating a distraction so Rivkele can sneak onto a train to another camp and survive.

Teri is a barracks leader at the camp and hides Rivkele among the women prisoners. Their renewed friendship blossoms into love, made dangerous by Halyna, Teri’s scorned lover who uncovers Rivkele’s secret. Halyna summons the Germans who drag Rivkele and Teri out to be hung. On the gallows they sing a duet of “Rivkele” to each other that ends when the traps open.