At her grave in a lonely grove, nymphs and shepherds grieve for Euridice, who died after being bitten by a snake. Orfeo, Euridice’s forlorn husband, vows to rescue Euridice from the Underworld. Amore, the God of love, comes to tell Orfeo that he will be allowed to descend into the land of the dead to retrieve Euridice — but he must neither look at her, nor explain why not. If he does, he will lose Euridice forever.

At the entrance to Hades, demons and ghosts try to stop him from passing through to the Elysian Fields, but in the face of his sorrow, they relent. Orfeo is moved by the beauty of the landscape and Euridice is brought to him. Forbidden to look at her and forbidden to explain, he leads her away through a dark labyrinth, back to the world of the living. But when Euridice, not understanding, panics at the thought of a life without his love, Orfeo turns to her in desperation. Euridice dies, again.

The grief-stricken Orfeo wonders how he can live without her and decides to kill himself. Amore re-appears to stop him and, in response to Orfeo’s deep love, revives Euridice. In the finale at the Temple of Love, Orfeo, Euridice, Amore, the nymphs and shepherds celebrate together the power of love.