The musical revolves around Labaw Donggon, a demigod in an epic poem called the Hinilawod from the island of Panay in the Philippines. It chronicles his quest for three wives, his subsequent defeat from Saragnayan (the Lord of Darkness), his salvation by his two sons, and the eventual realization of his own vanity and pride being his greatest enemies.
The production was conceived as an outdoor performance situated in a real bamboo grove. A temporary thrust stage with arena style seating was erected in front of the grove with the intent of giving the audience a taste of the epic’s recital in an indigenous community setting.
Much of the clothes took on a Pan-Southeast Asian look with jewel tones and metallic gold accents to make the performers more prominent in the vast space. The pieces of jewelry, headdresses, weaponry alluded to the Visayan and neighboring Southeast Asian traditions to illustrate the complexity of this culture and its influences.