Pecan Summer at Sydney Opera House, Concert Hall

Sixty thousand years of Yorta Yorta history. 70 years of dispossession. The summer of 1939 will change the lives of the people of Cummeragunja forever. Alice is nine years old. Her family is her entire world. Alice's world is about to be torn apart.

Opportunities to view Australia's history through an Indigenous lens are rare in the world of opera. Cheetham's Pecan Summer is a landmark opera for the 21st century, a contemporary opera for Indigenous Australians, a story for all Australians.

"This is a milestone in Australian opera. It should be widely seen both here and overseas, for a number of reasons. Firstly, because it is good. It is also a wonderful vehicle showcasing an amazing array of Indigenous operatic talent. It tells an important story which has relevance to all Australians, and anywhere where there are minority communities who have suffered at the hands of an oppressive majority. Bravi to all involved, and brava, Deborah Cheetham."

Sandra Bowdler, Opera Britannia, 14/9/12

"That Pecan Summer is a highly important work for this country, both creatively and culturally, seems undeniable… Deborah Cheetham is to be commended as writer, composer, singer and director; but she is also to be championed for addressing, head-on via this opera's simple but powerful storytelling, a deep wound in the Australian psyche surrounding the Stolen Generations."

An Opera for all Seasons. Part 2, Graham Strahle, Music Australia 31/07/14