In her hometown of Grass Valley, vivacious teenager Lotta Crabtree (Mitzi Gaynor) is thrilled when the famed performer Lola Montez comes to town in 1863. She wants to become a singer like Lola herself someday, although parents Mary Ann (Una Merkel) and John Crabtree (James Barton (actor)), who run a boarding house, don't necessarily approve.