Inanna, a young woman split off from her dark side and her sexuality, dances the gogo at night and pursues a career as an actress by day. Inside the theater, watching a puppet play directed by Derek, she identifies with the darkness in his autobiographical play. When Inanna and Derek meet in person they are instantly and deeply attracted to each other and a complicated and passionate love affair begins. Inanna and Derek marry quickly. However, Derek is unable to make love to Inanna and is plagued by migraines that split his vision creating haunting flashbacks and distorted perceptions of Inanna. Meanwhile, Inanna is cast in a performance art piece that draws her into a psychological descent and she becomes haunted by the images stirred up by the play and the way her life and the play become enmeshed.
As Derek withdraws from Inanna more and more, she becomes suspicious and jealous of Derek's assistant, Shelley, who he seems to have a special connection with.
As Inanna struggles to reach for Derek, she provokes more and more violent outbursts from him, culminating in Derek hitting himself so hard in the head that he busts his eardrum and ultimately silences Inanna with emotional blackmail. Inanna begins to give up pieces of her life for Derek's approval. She gives up her gogo dancing, she gives up her friendships and she agrees to give up her role in the play. But Derek leaves Inanna anyway and moves in with Shelley. After Derek leaves Inanna, she reconnects with her friend, Anja, a gogo dancer, sex worker activist, mother and child therapist. Anja encourages Inanna not to give up herself in order to get a man to love her. She insists Inanna continue with her performance. And as Inanna moves through the play she is confronted by the many ways women and the earth have been wounded by the patriarchy. Inanna is stripped bare as she descend to the underworld to face the abandoned pieces of her self. It is an act of true stripping, very different than the experience she has at the gogo. Derek, in his own split, unable to f**k the woman he is emotionally connected to, is now able to consummate his marriage with Inanna, though it is not a true consummation as he is only able to f**k Inanna while "cheating" on Shelley. Inanna is being ripped to shreads living in this triangle, but the shredding is leading her closer and closer to a final claiming of her rage. Hitting bottom, Inanna returns to the theater and faces and embraces Ereshkigal, her "dark sister of the underworld," her own darkness. She reveals her "affair" with Derek and destroys his masks, forcing Derek to face his childhood wounds. Derek's heart breaks and he is able to grieve. Inanna is able to claim her rage and rise to her own independence.