A bold new opera premieres this summer: The Nine Jewelled Deer

World Premiere – July 6, 2025 – Festival d’Aix-en-Provence

Composer Sivan Eldar and singer-improviser Ganavya Doraiswamy come together for The Nine Jewelled Deer, a groundbreaking new opera co-commissioned by the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence and the LUMA Foundation, with visionary director Peter Sellars at the helm.

Bridging seemingly distant musical worlds—contemporary classical and electronic music for Eldar, South Indian tradition and jazz for Doraiswamy—this collaboration is driven by a shared artistic commitment to care, openness, and radical listening.

Joining this extraordinary team are visual artist Julie Mehretu and acclaimed novelist Lauren Groff, forming a creative ensemble that redefines the boundaries of opera with a thoroughly modern and deeply human perspective.

Inspired by ancient myths, modern lives, and timeless spiritual journeys, The Nine Jewelled Deer unfolds across a tapestry of evocative settings:

– An ancient Chinese cave painting, where a man is rescued by a mystical deer whose existence must remain secret.

– A modest kitchen in contemporary India, where an elderly woman heals wounded souls through song.

– A secluded garden, once a place of exile, now transformed into a sanctuary of enlightenment.

Anchored in the eternal theme of transformation, the opera echoes Ovid’s words from Metamorphoses: “There is nothing stable in the universe; everything passes, all forms exist only to come and go.”

A luminous meditation on compassion, reinvention, and the deep interconnection of all beings, The Nine Jewelled Deer is not just an opera—it is an experience.

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