Ku'damm 56: Season 1

1956: Due to improper behavior, the young Monika Schöllack has just been dismissed from her household management school. Struggling and ashamed of herself, she returns home to her mother Caterina and her sisters Helga and Eva. Caterina Schöllack runs the reputed dance school "Galant" which is famed for its impeccable reputation. Her husband - the girls' father - has been missing since 1944. Fritz Assmann, a friend of the family, lends Caterina his support at the dance school and in private life. For Caterina, Monika's dismissal is clear proof of her daughter's failure. She is more hopeful when it comes to Helga, who will soon be marrying the up-and-coming district attorney Wolfgang von Boost, and the self-assured Eva, who massively flirts with Professor Fassbender, in whose neurological clinic she works as a nurse. At Helga's wedding, Monika is accompanied by the factory owner's son Joachim Franck. Initially she is profoundly fascinated by him. But when they are alone, the situation escalates and Monika is involved in a traumatic incident.

In front of the dance school, Monika meets a slightly deranged-looking gentleman. He turns out to be Simon Crohn and claims that his family had owned the Galant Dance School until 1936. Monika's curiosity is piqued. Has the dance school perhaps not belonged to the Schöllacks for generations? In Caterina's bedroom, Monika secretly searches for evidence in order to find out the truth about her family history. As a matter of fact, she finds photos in her mother's closet that supports Crohn's accusation. In the meantime, Joachim Franck is wooing Monika again. Caterina pressures Monika to relent. But Monika's resistance towards her mother is growing, especially since Caterina is not as "clean" as she pretends to be. Monika accepts Freddy's offer to join him at the "rock 'n' roll" dance club "Mutter Brause". At the club, a completely new world opens up to her: flips, leather jackets, petticoats and American rock 'n' roll. Hordes of young people are dancing wildly on the dance floor. Monika starts feeling the vibe and the freedom that connects with this lifestyle.

Monika's growing self-awareness helps her to have the courage to introduce her own rock 'n' roll course in the dance school, against her mother's will. The course is a great success, which brings many new enrollments with it. The "Galant" is now the only dance school in Berlin that offers rock 'n' roll. Monika also runs into Joachim again and senses that he has changed. The evening of the dance-school ball becomes an evening of truth: Fritz Assmann quits his post at the Galant. Just as Caterina proudly announces Eva's engagement to Professor Fassbender, Rudi realizes that he has no future with Eva. Freddy and Monika interrupt the glamorous event with a wild but perfectly fashioned rock 'n' roll dancing performance. Joachim cannot hide his jealousy towards Freddy, and a fight breaks out on the dance floor between the two.