en Cuevana 3. Preben Bang visits the Borkmann family and invites Mrs. Lissen to the opera. Her husband Fredrik says he wants to stay home. The Borkmann family is also visited by their friends Einar and Topsy Lorck Mathiesen. And while Preben takes Lissen and Einar to the opera, Topsy and Fredrik are left alone in the apartment. The two "left behind" soon find comfort in each other's company.