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The five tales told in the opera are based respectively on legends from the Crow, Okanagon, Karok, Klamath, and Hopi tribes. The music is not intended to resemble Native American songs and traditions; its style is purely Henry Mollicone's. Each of the tribe's tales is told in a separate scene. The Coyote figure is featured prominently in each, representing the embodiment of the entirety of our human nature. The five tales are: Old Man Coyote Makes the World, Coyote Keeps his Name, How Coyote Brought Fire to the People, Coyote in Love with a Star, and Coyote and Pavayoykyasi. The scenes are held together by a character called "The Storyteller," who at the end of the opera addresses Coyote: "As you behave, we shall too. Old Man Coyote, we are you."
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