The Mayor of a Russian town gathers his officials and tells them he has received a letter from a friend saying that a government inspector is traveling from province to province, and he is doing so incognito. The Judge, the Inspector of Schools, the Doctor, the Warden of Charities, and the Postmaster are all distressed that their various shortcuts, bribes, and derelictions of duty might be sussed out, so they decide to put their affairs in order as quickly as possible. The Mayor tells the Postmaster especially to read the letters coming in to see when the inspector might arrive, and the Postmaster cheerfully says he already does read them just to see what the world is up to. For his part, the Mayor worries that his occasional fleecing of the shopkeepers might catch up with him, but he consoles himself by saying that everyone has their little indiscretions.
Two townspeople, Bobchinsky and Dobchinsky, rush over to the officials and tell them they that think the government inspector is already here and they have seen him. He is a young, slight man staying at the inn, and he acts just the way a government inspector would act; also, he hasn’t paid his bill yet. The Mayor, in a panic, decides that he will go over to the inn and introduce himself.
This man is Khlestakov, a minor government official from St. Petersburg here with Osip, his servant. Khlestakov is dissolute and prone to gambling and overindulging himself. He is annoyed that the innkeeper will not serve him any more food because he has not paid his bill. Osip urges him to leave the town, but Khlestakov does not yet want to return to his father.
When the Mayor arrives and sees Khlestakov, he is sure that he is the promised government inspector. Khlestakov is nervous when the Mayor confronts him, and he thinks he is being unfairly targeted. He begins to grow imperious, further convincing the Mayor that this is the man from St. Petersburg. Finally, tensions subside, with the Mayor mistakenly believing Khlestakov to be the government inspector and Khlestakov feeling more at ease in the town—especially because the Mayor has invited him to stay in his own home.
The whole town is in an uproar over the government inspector, including the Mayor’s wife Anna and his daughter Marya. They are both clamoring for a look at him, and Anna becomes annoyed with her daughter for preening too much in front of the mirror.
Khlestakov enjoys the way he is being treated—showered with food, drink, a warm bed, and many accolades. He finds both Anna and Marya attractive, and he boasts of how powerful he is in St. Petersburg, making up numerous lies and embellishing his situation to impress the provincial people around him.
The next day, Khlestakov welcomes each civil servant for individual meetings. They are all very nervous around him, but when Khlestakov asks to borrow money from them, they all happily acquiesce and feel a sense of relief that he probably will not investigate their departments more thoroughly.
Osip encourages his master to leave the town, for their treatment is too good to be true. Khlestakov grumbles a bit, but he decides that this is best. He has realized by this point that the officials seem to think he is someone he is not, and he has a laugh at their expense. He writes a letter to a friend making fun of the people here, marveling at how they mistook him for someone he was not. Osip mails the letter at the post office.
Before he can leave, though, a gaggle of shopkeepers gathers outside the Mayor’s home to solicit Khlestakov’s help. He agrees to see them out of curiosity, and they express how terribly the Mayor treats them. Two women provide stories of the Mayor sending one’s husband to the army even though he was not due, and one receiving a public flogging for a crime not committed. Khlestakov is sympathetic at first and gives hollow promises to do something for them all, but he eventually grows weary of their whining and orders Osip to get rid of the crowd.
Marya comes down to see where her mother is and encounters Khlestakov. He flirts incessantly with her and tells her he loves her. He gets on his knees before her, which is the position he is in when Anna bursts in. She is indignant and orders Marya away. Khlestakov thinks to himself that Anna is more attractive than her daughter, and he begins to direct his attention to her instead. Marya returns and sees Khlestakov begging Anna for her attention, and she is aghast. Khlestakov changes course again and says that of course he is here for Marya, who is now relieved and charmed. Anna is glad that her daughter will (putatively) marry rich.
The Mayor returns to the house and tells Khlestakov, in a fervor, not to believe any of the shopkeepers. He is pleased to learn moments later that his daughter is to marry Khlestakov.
However, Khlestakov tells them he must go on a short journey to see his rich uncle, assuring them that he will be back very soon. He asks the Mayor for a bit of traveling money, and the Mayor happily assents. They all bid goodbye.
The Mayor and Anna discuss their glorious new life in St. Petersburg, and the Mayor is even more pleased when he addresses his wayward shopkeepers and bullies them into apologizing.
The other civil servants come to pay their respects to the newly engaged Marya and her parents, grumbling privately at the Mayor’s good fortune.
The Postmaster arrives abruptly with a letter he found, sent from Khlestakov to his friend in St. Petersburg. In the letter, Khlestakov laughs that he has been mistaken for a government inspector, insulting them all and gloating over his good fortune.
The Mayor and the others are shell-shocked, full of blame and despair. Suddenly, a gendarme appears and announces that an official from St. Petersburg has arrived and requires their presence at the inn immediately.
Every person experiences a shock at the same time, and they all freeze into an immobile mute scene. They hold their dramatic positions for a minute and a half.
