Described by the composer as a "lyric tale in two parts", the libretto is by playwright Martin Crimp and it is Benjamin's first stage work.
It premiered at Opéra Bastille on 22 November 2006, conducted by Franck Ollu, directed by Daniel Jeanneteau, and performed by Anu Komsi and Hilary Summers with instrumentalists from Ensemble Modern.
Elisabeth Angel-Perez describes this technique as "self-narration", noting its elision of more traditional operatic forms of recitative and aria as well as its extensive use in Written on Skin.
High, simple soprano writing is used to convey the innocence of the Child, while more extreme coloratura passages represent the other-worldliness of the Stranger.
[1] Several reviewers have remarked upon Benjamin's orchestration, particularly the cimbalom's "eerie" quality[7] and the unusual timbres of the contrabass clarinet and basset horn.
After an instrumental interlude, the Minister's Child asks the Mother why the rats have to die, becoming agitated as she describes them wearing clothes and carrying suitcases and babies.
[21] Less positive reviews cite the alienating effect of the narrative style and its cryptic modes of expression, describing it as dramatically "non-committal".