Night Sky With Exit Wounds (2026)

Night Sky with Exit Wounds is a multi-disciplinary stage production conceived by composer Bryce Dessner and directed by one of the world’s most renowned young directors Silvia Costa, with libretto taken directly from Ocean Vuong’s multi-award winning debut poetry collection. Drawing on Vuong’s raw evocation of violence and cultural displacement and his vision of a world brimming with hope and wonder, the piece is a journey through the resonance of war within the contemporary psyche.

The performance will be led by mezzo-soprano Fleur Barron, supported by an orchestral ensemble of 18, but it is a theatrical experience, suitable for both black box and proscenium arch stagings, rather than pure concert. Multi-media artist and MacArthur “Genius” Award winner Tuan Andrew Nguyen will create a sculptural setting with video. Lighting design is by lighting designer Tom Visser, among the most innovative voices in lighting.

With Costa and Dessner navigating the delicate balance between the raw vulnerability of Vuong’s poetry and the dynamic interplay of music and visuals, the collaborators are embarking on an exploration that transcends conventional design boundaries toward a universe where live music, poetry and visual art find a seamless, deeply charged flow.

Night Sky with Exit Wounds will premiere at Manchester International Festival in July 2027.