Saturday night’s premiere of Hogfish’s SVADBA offered a moving, immersive experience unlike anything Maine audiences have encountered this season.

Part ritual, part opera, part immersive gathering, SVADBA (Serbian for “wedding”) transformed Halo at Thompson’s Point into something closer to a communal rite of passage. From the moment guests arrived and walked a labyrinth path through the orchard, it was clear they were in for something special.

The performance began not with instruments, but with breath: six singers invited the audience to hum with them, establishing a shared vibration from which the music rose. The result was raw and mesmerizing.

Composer Ana Sokolović’s score, rich with Balkan folk rhythms and tightly woven vocal textures, was brought to life by an exceptional cast. Mary Johnston Letellier gave a luminous performance as the bride, Milica, anchoring the piece with clarity and depth. The five singers who portrayed her closest friends—Audrey Luna, Michele Kennedy, Hailey McAvoy, Keith Wehmeier, and Kim Mendez—navigated the opera’s intricate harmonies a cappella, without an orchestra, a stunning feat of virtuosity. They were led by music director Shelby Rhoades, whose gift of perfect pitch allowed her to achieve the remarkable feat of singing and conducting simultaneously while moving fluidly through the space.

Director Matt Cahill staged the piece in the round, erasing boundaries between audience and performer. The atmosphere was charged, intimate and completely alive. Dancer Laura Careless offered a breathtaking final solo, weaving the physical language of transformation into the closing moment with quiet power and grace. When the final note dissolved into silence, the stage was handed over to Conical Cacophony, New England’s premiere Balkan brass band, and the evening blossomed into a dance party.

There, two extraordinary folk dancers, Sladja Duvnjak and Barbara Merson, stepped forward to teach the audience traditional steps. Their energy was joyful, generous and deeply connective. Both women carried powerful cultural legacies in stories shared by so many who have left or fled homelands to begin new lives in the United States. In this way, the dance was more than a finale; it was a living gift of culture and resilience.

As Mainers clasped hands and danced across the floor, something rare occurred: a community brought together in a moment when so much in our world feels fractured.

SVADBA reimagined what opera could be. On Saturday night, the crowd’s standing ovation made it clear: Maine is ready for more.

That spirit of reconnection continues this week with Hogfish’s inaugural Regenerative Arts Summit, co-presented with the Portland Museum of Art and Wolfe’s Neck Center for Agriculture & the Environment. The three-day gathering, which begins Wednesday, Jul. 30, brings together artists, ecologists and cultural leaders to explore how creativity can renew our relationships to land, community, and each other.

Core summit sessions include:

What Is Regenerative Art? facilitated by Edwin Cahill, with panelists Susan Bickford, Matt Cahill, Kerem Durdag, Jonah Fertig-Burd, Maya French, Matthew Glassman, Therese Jornlin, Marita Kennedy-Castro, Chiara Liberatore, Marcia Minter, and Tessy Sewar

Regeneration for Communities, facilitated by Kelsey Halliday Johnson, with Mollie Cashwell, Maya French, Matthew Glassman, Jennie Hahn, and Heritier Noss

Regeneration for the Earth, facilitated by Elizabeth Horton, with John Arbuckle, Susan Bickford, Doug Clopp, Elizabeth Fertig-Burd, and Nell Houd

Regeneration for Individuals, facilitated by Matt Cahill, with Therese Jornlin, Marita Kennedy-Castro, Khristina Kurasz, Janey Thibodeau, and Tessy Seward

In addition to panels, the summit includes immersive outdoor experiences, hands-on-healing, performances and cross-disciplinary workshops led by Hogfish’s summer artists-in-residence. Practices like regenerative gardening, movement-based healing, sound meditation, and sustainable storytelling will unfold across the Portland Museum of Art and Wolfe’s Neck Center.

There is just one more chance to see SVADBA: Wednesday, July 30 at Thompson’s Point, following the summit’s opening day. A limited number of tickets remain, starting as low as $20, and include access to the labyrinth, performance, and community dance. Summit registration is also still open.

Find tickets and details here.