In his plot for Noises Off, Frayn plays on the concept of a play within a play, in this case a dreadful sex-comedy titled Nothing On—the type of play in which young girls run about in their underwear, old men drop their trousers, and many doors continually open and shut. Nothing On is set in "a delightful 16th-century posset mill"[2][3] that has been converted to a modern dwelling for which renters are solicited; the fictional playwright is appropriately named Robin Housemonger. Each of the three acts of Noises Off contains a performance of the first act of Nothing On.[4]
Act One is set at the dress rehearsal, the night before opening at the (fictional[5]) Grand Theatre in Weston-super-Mare, with the cast still fumbling with entrances and exits, missed cues, misspoken lines, and bothersome props, most notably several plates of sardines.
Act Two portrays a Wednesday matinee performance one month later,[6] at the (again fictional[7]) Theatre Royal in Ashton-under-Lyne. In this act, the play is seen from backstage, providing a view that reveals the deteriorating personal relationships among the cast that have led to offstage shenanigans and onstage bedlam. Also, there appears to be no true resolution. The play simply falls into turmoil and disorder before the curtain is pulled.
In Act Three, we see a performance near the end of the ten-week run, at the (still fictional) Municipal Theatre in Stockton-on-Tees, when personal friction has continued to increase and everyone is bored and anxious to be done with the play. The actors attempt to cover up a series of mishaps but only compound the problems and draw attention to the bungling performance.
Much of the comedy emerges from the subtle variations in each version as off-stage chaos affects on-stage performance, with a great deal of slapstick. The contrast between players' on-stage and off-stage personalities is also a source of comic dissonance.

水牛城的女士们正在夜总会看脱衣舞男表演，十分兴奋，而男士们则面对工厂倒闭后的失业，只能靠临救济金度日。故事主人公杰里.鲁克沃斯基（Jerry Lukowski）和他过分超重的朋友戴夫.布凯庭斯凯（Dave Bukatinsky），天资粗笨但热心肠的伊森.吉拉德（Ethan Girard），以及跟病重母亲一起生活的马尔科姆.马克格雷格（Malcolm MacGregor）一边领着救济金，一边觉得自己生活一团糟。
杰里和戴夫回家路上路过夜总会，看到脱衣舞男的海报，觉得男人不应该像那样卖弄风骚度日，但是女士们却非常喜欢看这样的表演。他得知戴夫的妻子夜在里面观看，要求他把妻子带出来，戴夫觉得十分勉强，现在妻子挣钱更多，他只能老老实实做家务。杰里决定进去看个究竟，他拉着戴夫从男厕所窗口翻进去，遇到换装的舞男，杰里指责他丢了男人的脸，并表示自己是异性恋，不做这种同志营生，舞男把他打倒在地，杰里显然没有自己想象的那么有男人气概。
第二天，他受到法院命令，由于他没有按时支付儿子的抚养费，他将被剥夺监护权，儿子将归前妻帕姆（Pam），她现在和工作稳定泰迪（Teddy）同居，并打算接受他求婚。为了挣钱保住儿子的监护权，他决定做脱衣舞男，他拉着戴夫一起健身。在长跑路上救下了打算自杀的马尔科姆，邀请他加入自己的脱衣舞团。他在一家废弃的厂房值夜班，他们就在那里排练。
他们找到失业已久的前舞蹈老师哈罗德当编舞，并举行面试寻找更多伙伴，他们找到了50岁但精力旺盛的霍斯（Horse）以及虽然毫无歌舞天赋，但是“硬件”过人的伊森。排练中，哈罗德无法让这群毫无节奏感的男士相互卸掉，直到杰里想到用篮球方法带领大家练习节奏和协作，大家终于渐入佳境。
要想进夜总会演出，杰里必须交一千美元押金，他四处求助无果，儿子内森把自己的大学储备金给了父亲。第一次脱衣连排效果惨淡，男士们都非常紧张，他们知道观众可能会非常挑剔。
内森找到几个观众来检验舞团的排练成果，但衣服脱到一半，警察冲进来制止住宅区的“色情活动”。伊森和马尔科姆成功逃脱，他们躲到马尔科姆家，突然意识到对彼此有好感，这时马尔科姆的母亲悄然去世。帕姆和未婚夫到警察局带走内森，出了这样的事故，即使杰里弄到足够的抚养费，也不可能得到抚养权。
这帮业余舞团演出的票务销售并不乐观，女士们都认为不值得花钱看业余演员跳，杰里告诉她们这帮演员会脱的很彻底，于是票务销售有了起色。临近演出，戴夫因缺乏自信，接受了一个超市工作，退出舞团，杰里非常愤怒。在妻子的鼓励下，戴夫终于鼓起勇气决定参加演出。
演出开始前，由于戴夫的退出，杰里也打算放弃，但当戴夫出现准备上场后，他找不到任何借口，放弃的真正原因是害怕失败。儿子内森告诉父亲，如果他没有勇气登台才是最大的失败，于是他和其他人一起登台，并真正一脱到底。他们脱衣并非展示傲人的身材，而是找回失去已久的自信。

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