Valley Of Light

This was a beautiful coming of age show. It was quite captivating and I often found myself falling into the world of the show. ... full review

Valley of Light is a sweet and mysterious show that captivated me with its dedicated cast and well-suited music. The story and music style reminded me of Celtic folk music, which I adore, and the exploration of themes added depth to the experience. While it took me a little while to realize that the story was set in a post-apocalyptic time, reading the synopsis clarified everything. Tess Botts deserves special recognition for her beautiful vocals and guitar playing on stage. However, there were some cast members whose vocals didn't quite match the overall quality of the production. Additionally, the show's ambition to perform on a big stage without microphones for the live music posed some challenges. Nonetheless, I thoroughly enjoyed the... full review

Valley of Light has some promising concepts, a great theme, and a good deal of potential, but it’s clear that this show needs more dramaturgical work, and would benefit from a deeper analysis of the composition and story beats.... full review

6.6 out of 10 – Okay! Click the link below to learn more: https://latheatrebites.com/hollywood-fringe-2023-valley-of-light-the-broadwater-review/... full review

I understand the comparison with Hadestown in tone and style. However, this show does not have the same benefit of audience familiarity with the story to work from, and I did not feel the song content was active enough to adequately help the audience with the worldbuilding and themes. This puts a large burden on the audience to actively work at putting it together, rather than the show structure doing that work to present it to us seamlessly--I felt forced to choose between trying to understand what was happening or just letting the music & design elements wash over me, as I did not feel able to do both.... full review

Dramaturgically the show is severely underdeveloped and the plot isn't as clear as it needs to be for an audience to follow along. That much was made apparent as folks left trying to sort out what actually had happened. There seems to be some draws from the style of Hadestown musically but every song's composition falling in line with the one that came before makes characters seems more redundant and stagnant than anything else. Additionally, the characters are not fleshed out enough for the story nor are they in a place where audience's can connect with them enough to care about what happens to them in the end. Although, I will note, it seems that the character Amber has the clearest arc, exposition and journey. The Echoes at this current i... full review