Puccini's “La Boheme” takes place in Paris, France, and begins on a cold Christmas Eve in the attic apartment of Rodolfo & Marcello, a painter and a writer, who have chosen their artforms over a more conventional livelihood, thereby joining the Bohemian community of that era. Their cohorts, Schaunard and Colline, drop by and invite them to attend a Christmas Eve celebration at the local Cafe' Momus! Marcello leaves, but Rodolfo stays behind for a few moments. Mimi, a seamstress, who lives in the same building, wanders into their apartment to have her candle relighted, and she and Rodolfo quickly fall in love. Rodolfo invites her to join him at Cafe' Momus. It is there that Marcello is reluctantly reunited with the “love of his life”, Musetta. The ladies become friends, and the story follows the four lovers and their joys and heartaches through the next several months.
