Acclaimed Yorta Yorta and Yuin composer, actor and soprano vocalist Deborah Cheetham's opera Parrwang Lifts the Sky is far from anything to make kids' eyes glaze over.

In the final days of NAIDOC Week, families, couples and the young ones with them filed into the Melbourne Art Centre to witness a cherished Wadawurrung Dreamtime story come to life on stage.

When magpie Parrwang (played by Rebecca Rashleigh) is greeted by human brother and sister Tjatjarrnag (Jess Hitchcock) and Koki (Michael Petrucelli) in the high branches of an ancient gum tree, their first glimpse at the bright sky inspires a joint mission for the trio.

Parrwang agrees to help lift the sky and brighten their world covered by darkness below.

She first must convince her cautious cousin visiting from Yorta Yorta country Gorngany (played by Cheetham) to help present the children's plight to the presiding council of birds.

With the grace and approval of Wadawurrung creator spirit Bunjil, portrayed as an eagle (Adrian Tamburini), despite the apprehension of crows Mr and Mrs Waa (Eamon Dooley and Shauntai Sherree), the team get to work of gifting the human world with the beauty of nature which surrounds them.

It's a warming performance for the passionate to novice, and even the reluctant, opera-goer.

The colour, humour and parable in the tie between country, people and animals proves a treat for the kids in their seats.

Ms Cheetham first started production on Wadawurrung country in Geelong almost a decade ago.

Commissioned to put a new show together with her non-for-profit Short Black Opera, she took the story of Parrwang first told to her by Aunty Corrina Eccles to Victorian Opera artistic director Richard Mills.

"Captivated" by it, Ms Cheetham told National Indigenous Times an original song proved success with the kids in the production's infancy.

"When I mentioned and told him the story of Parrwang Lifts the Sky, he immediately just said, 'that's the one. Firstly, we want a story that has resonance for people in this part of the world…and secondly, it's just such a beautiful story,'" she said.

Bunjil and Parrwang were must-have characters, Mr and Mrs Waa were inspired by the crows that sat outside Mr Cheetham's window at her then-home in Melbourn.

She landed on and bringing her own ties to Country by naming Gorngany with the Yorta Yorta word for magpie.

"I thought Parrwang, this is an excellent opportunity to demonstrate that across our vast continent. But even just within Victoria, there are different names for the same thing because we have different clans and language groups...so trying always to build in these layers of of teaching," Ms Cheetham said.

"I wanted to make sure that the depth of our connectedness as clan groups was on display there too."

She said the driving force behind the story is the a brother and sibling duo "unfettered by the baggage of so much misunderstanding or lack of connection to nature" and exploring nature as children do.

"I wanted to write in a style that was instantly recognisable for opera-goers, that had a kind of clarity for people who just wanted to come and hear the story," Ms Cheetham said.

"For non-Indigenous audiences engaging with this story for the first time, I felt it was really important that the music was a vehicle for understanding…so that then we can go into this really layered approach to imparting knowledge about how we might better live in the world."

Ms Cheetham said each performance is receptive to the buzz, energy and interactions between one another coming from those in their seats.

"For me, that means that the process is working for a children's opera. There willl come a time for kids and there'll be an environment (for) sitting in silence and just letting the music speak to them and processing it later…but this opera was not that," she said.

"This was - let's engage with this, let's discover and explore and explain what's happening and even discuss it while it's happening."

"I'm so proud to have presented something in the centre of NAIDOC Week for audiences who are really hungry to engage with First Nations culture. I'm really proud that Pawan Lifts the Sky was part of that."

Short Black Opera has provided development opportunities to singers since 2008.

Budding First Nations stars can get in touch with the company ahead of their winter incentive on Gadigal land in 2024.