Besides the protagonist, represented by a dummy, there are 23 roles requiring seven singers (mezzo-soprano, countertenor, bass, two tenors, two baritones) and four dancers.

The orchestra contains single winds including trumpet and horn, and strings, as well as a backstage brass band.

[1][2] John Warnaby has discussed the relation of the opera to the writings of James Joyce and Thomas Mann.

The story concerns a mute child who never speaks or sings during the work and how his family deals with him and tries to mould him.

One surgeon dissects the child's brain, and hopes to fix his moral and intellectual faults.