The fairy tale-plot is off to a spectacular start: Mighty King Hamed is angry and disappointed with his wife and bans the entire female population from his kingdom – except for his mother. Princess Sherifa hears about this and travels to see Hamed, disguised as Prince Sherif. The king likes his new friend very much, but: Is he really a prince?

Together with the audience, King Hamed explores what is typically male or female. With tongues firmly in cheek, prevailing patterns of thought and behaviour of both sexes are exposed. The Lebanese composer Zad Moultaka, a master of musical humour, combines what we call western classical music with the traditional sounds of his eastern home – and these influences merge with ease and bring about a new and exciting result.