In Venice in 1574, the Bard meets a forbidden woman, the honored courtesan, Veronica Franco. He finds more than his match in this beautiful published poet. This is a fictionalized retelling of the life of Edward de Vere-17th Earl of Oxford, the man behind the plays of William Shakespeare-that juxtaposes his travels through Italy with scenes from his life in England, his plays and poetry. The plot tells of the romance between Oxford and the most honored Venetian poet, Veronica Franco. In Venice, Oxford meets the honored, beautiful courtesan Veronica Franco. He avails himself of her. To his surprise, she is a published poet and highly regarded in Venetian literary circles. She introduces him to Venetian society, the works of art in the city and they travel through the Mediterranean. Oxford sees love as a game played by romantic courtiers. Veronica Franco teaches him it is a game played with your heart. As Oxford travels through Italy his encounters with people and art that surrealistic reveal his past or project him into the future. These surrealistic scenes paint the larger portrait of the life of the artist known as William Shakespeare.