Ubaldo Impallato Alberto Sordi is a precarious elementary music teacher who has spent years chasing a steady job, juggling after-school duties to make ends meet. Among the children he tutors is Gigetto Giancarlo Zarfati, a six-year-old with a remarkable baritone that sets him apart from the others. Ubaldo first notices Gigetto’s extraordinary gift when he hears him interpret The Barber of Seville, initially thinking the sound comes from a radio singer rather than a child. This uncanny talent becomes a beacon of possibility for him, and the unlikely duo begins to dream bigger than their small-town routine.
A breakthrough moment comes with Gigetto’s standout performance on a television talent show, instantly turning him into a sensation and a potential gold mine. With the backing of a theatrical impresario, Gigetto is offered a role in Verdi’s Rigoletto, playing the hunchbacked buffoon, a part tailored to showcase his powerful baritone. The prospect, however, attracts the greed of Gigetto’s uncles—men who had previously refused to look after him—who hurry to seize control of the boy from his guardian in hopes of profiting from his star power.
Ubaldo resolves to protect the child, driven not only by a desire for personal advancement but by genuine affection. He begins to feel a growing bond with Gigetto and wants to shield him from the mercenary ambitions surrounding him. Yet Gigetto yearns for a life filled with the simple joys of childhood, growing tired of adult scheming and the sensation that the grown-ups only crave profit. Fate tests them both when Gigetto escapes the performing world, only to fall ill and require a tonsil operation. The doctors reveal that the boy’s enormous voice came from unusually large tonsils, a secret suddenly laid bare.
As rehearsals continue, the impresario is exposed for fraud, and the once-bright future for Gigetto begins to dim. No one wants the child around anymore, and the dream that had seemed so close slips away. Back in the background, Ubaldo—who had once rejected the teaching post—acts quickly to intercept a threatening letter that could deny him the chance to stay involved in Gigetto’s life and education for the school year.
Just when things seem most uncertain, Gigetto’s father is released from prison and comes to reclaim his son. Ubaldo voices a stubborn reluctance to let go, arguing that the child should remain under his care for the year. Yet the situation takes another twist when the father reveals an astonishing talent of his own: he can play the piano with uncanny skill. Overwhelmed by the new reality and the pressure of managing Gigetto’s extraordinary gifts, Ubaldo makes a difficult choice and asks—then effectively orders—the father to take the “monster” back home before the boy’s life is overwhelmed by the endless talents and attention surrounding him.
