The ECC Arts Center will present the world premiere of Seven Realms of Attar, a landmark, multi-disciplinary stage production by internationally acclaimed, trailblazing music pioneers Niyaz, on Saturday, March 14 at 7:30pm in the Blizzard Theatre.
Inspired by the timeless 12th-century Sufi masterpiece, The Conference of the Birds by Persian mystic and poet Attar, this first-time performance fuses live music, poetry, dance, and visionary stagecraft into a living, immersive cosmos with sweeping animation and 3D projection mapping.
Seven Realms of Attar takes audiences on a transcendent journey through the seven spiritual valleys explored in The Conference of Birds, with each realm embodying the trials, losses, and awakenings that define the human condition.
At the heart of the production is the reclamation and celebration of Iranian heritage, presenting Iranian and regional artistic traditions not as relics of the past, but as a response to today’s global unrest and deepening division, unfolding as both a spiritual odyssey and a powerful affirmation of humanity’s shared longing for unity and freedom.
Described by the Huffington Post as “an evolutionary force in contemporary Middle Eastern music, Niyaz (which means “yearning”) defies most standards of world music and makes a bold statement to a global audience. Founded in 2004 by Iranian-born, Indian raised vocalist and performer Azam Ali and Iranian multi-instrumentalist and composer Loga R. Torkian, Niyaz has created a 21st century global trance tradition by blending medieval Sufi poetry and ancient folk songs from their native Iran and its surrounding countries in the Persian Gulf with rich acoustic instrumentation and state-of-the-art modern electronics.
Tickets are $30 ($20 for children 12 and under) and can be purchased online at eccartscenter.org, by phone at 847-622-0300, or in person at the ECC Arts Center Box Office, 1700 Spartan Drive, Building H in Elgin.
