Pierre Delacroix is a young, Harvard-educated man who is the sole person of color writing for an upstart network with floundering ratings. Despite several attempts, Delacroix has yet to see any of his concepts go into production. Now his boss, the ratings-hungry, culture-vulture Dunwitty, issues him a searing ultimatum: come up with a hot, trend-setting, headline-making, urban hit or get fired. Feeling doomed, Delacroix decides to present the most outrageous, unbelievable farce of stereotypical comedy he can imagine - hearkening back to the old days of "black-face" minstrel shows with a variety show featuring Mantan, a homeless tap dancer, and his sidekick Womack. Incredibly, Delacroix's spoof turns into a ratings bonanza, a cultural phenomenon that has the media pundits raving and audience of all types howling. But, for Delacroix, the runaway success of "Mantan: The New Millennium Minstrel Show" is the start of a rapid unraveling.