Set in a theme park in an artificial cave, Pastoralia follows the story of two actors - one an unnamed man that plays a caveman, and the other a women named Janet, who plays a cavewoman. Janet is not the best actor, and the caveman gets mad at her for not fulfilling her role.
Every day the two actors do the same thing. A machine called the Big Slot gives them their food, which is typically a dead goat. They must gather their own resources to cook and prepare the goat, and the rest of the day is spent on cave paintings or hunting for cave insects.
The attendance at the park starts decreasing, and for one day the goat does not appear. A note is on the Big Slot instead, admitting apology. The next day, a goat also does not appear. Janet has trouble maintaining her anger, and starts talking in English. The caveman also is upset, but grunts in frustration. The third day, the goat comes, and Janet gets back into character, despite the fact that there are little to no visitors watching her anymore.
The caveman leaves the cave to dispose of both of their wastes, and visits the employee store to buy some mints and cigarettes. He learns that some other people have been fired, and later receives a note about more firings to come.
Greg Nordstrom, the supervisor of the company that runs the theme park, invites the actor to a meal together. He is thinking about firing Janet, but before he can do that, he needs the actor's assurance that she isn't performing well in her role. During their acting, the actor has sent reports to officials that Janet isn't doing the best that she can.
By note, the actor tells Janet of the situation. She promises to get better, but breaks her character another time when her son comes to visit her. He had gotten in trouble with the law for taking drugs, and Janet has somewhat of a meltdown. The actor receives word by fax that his family is at home, struggling with finances. Both Janet and the actor are tying to live off of the income coming from this rather odd isolationist acting gig.
After a long time of being alone, a group of tourists visits the caves, but Janet acts like a human. She speaks barbaric English to them, and the actor feels that he can no longer allow this to go on. He submits yet another negative evaluation regarding Janet. Greg, the owner of the company, tells him not to stay in the midst of the cave the next morning while they pull Janet aside and inform her of the bad news.
Because of his help to the company, the actor is rewarded with a real meal. Soon after, a new woman comes into the cave so that she can fill the role of Janet. The actor received a note from the company telling of how truth is something only someone can determine for themselves. The woman shows up in the cave, and has surgically altered her face to look more like a cavewoman. Somewhat abruptly, the story ends.
