Half Light

Half Light is an evocative and imaginative dance-theatre performance created by visually impaired artist Holly Thomas. At its heart, it is a story of a mother and a boy, shaped by moments of storm and sunrise, and threaded with the universal themes of love, protection, and the difficult process of letting go. The work invites audiences into a space where sight is not assumed, instead awakening other senses and encouraging a deeper awareness of movement revealed through sound.Part biographical and part fiction, Half Light takes inspiration from Holly Thomas’s lived experience of visual impairment and the complexities of parenting. By weaving together personal truth and creative storytelling, she unpacks what it means to face a world that does not always understand difference. The result is a rich and layered exploration of family, resilience, and the courage it takes to allow a child to step into life’s uncertainties.The performance offers audiences a chance to step outside the familiar and to encounter dance through new perspectives. Sight becomes just one element of the experience, rather than the default. In doing so, Half Light challenges traditional expectations of how dance is viewed and expands the ways in which stories can be told. The work reminds us that dance is not only something we see, but something we feel, hear, and sense in connection with others.Through its themes, the piece speaks across generations. It resonates with parents, children, and anyone who has experienced the protective bond of family or the bittersweet process of letting go. At the same time, it holds particular significance as a work created by a visually impaired artist, opening up conversations about accessibility, inclusion, and the value of diverse voices in the arts.Half Light is both intimate and expansive in its storytelling. It places the audience inside a world where stormy turbulence and the quiet beauty of a sunrise carry emotional weight. These metaphors, grounded in personal and lived realities, are layered into a narrative that balances vulnerability with strength, and individuality with universality.As a performance, it avoids spectacle for its own sake. Instead, it builds meaning from atmosphere, rhythm, and the interplay of sound and movement. This makes the work accessible to a wide audience, including those with lived experiences of visual impairment and those encountering such perspectives for the first time.Ultimately, Half Light is a celebration of courage—courage to share personal stories, to parent in uncertain worlds, and to step into realities that may be misunderstood. It is an invitation to audiences to reflect on their own perceptions, to embrace new ways of experiencing performance, and to find connection through empathy and imagination.