It depicts the hopeless love of the deaf and hunchbacked Quasimodo for the gypsy girl Esmeralda. She has inadvertently become the wife of the student poet Gringoire during the follies of the Cour de Miracles, and is also being pursued by the evil archdeacon Claude Frollo. Her principal rescuer from Frollo’s attempted abduction is the handsome Captain Phoebus, with whom Esmeralda falls in love. Frollo’s jealous intrigues cause her to be accused of murder, and she is awaiting execution when Quasimodo exposes Frollo as the real villain. The early versions of the ballet have this happy ending.

ACT I

The ballet opens with a bustling scene in the streets of Paris, where we are introduced to the beautiful gypsy girl Esmeralda. She captivates the crowd with her dancing and charms the poet Gringoire, who falls in love with her. However, the sinister Archdeacon Frollo also becomes infatuated with Esmeralda and plots to possess her. Meanwhile, Captain Phoebus, a handsome soldier, is also drawn to Esmeralda’s beauty.

Act II

In the second act, Frollo’s obsession with Esmeralda leads him to commit a series of heinous acts. He frames Esmeralda for the attempted murder of Phoebus, who has been wounded in a confrontation. Esmeralda is arrested and sentenced to death. Gringoire, who has married Esmeralda to save her from execution, tries to help her escape, but his efforts are in vain.

Act III

The final act sees Esmeralda imprisoned and awaiting her execution. Frollo offers to save her if she agrees to be with him, but she refuses. As she is led to the gallows, Quasimodo, the hunchbacked bell-ringer of Notre-Dame who loves Esmeralda, tries to rescue her. Despite his efforts, Esmeralda is executed, and Quasimodo, heartbroken, kills Frollo in a fit of rage. The ballet ends with Quasimodo mourning over Esmeralda’s lifeless body.