←Recommendations of How the Light Gets In

What stunning storytelling! I love each character and how they move through this world. Descriptions like comparing herself to a rainbow trout hit right every time. Highly recommend!

How many different ways to say that E.M. Lewis' writing is gorgeous, human, transformative and healing? I'm adding my voice to these lovely recommendations to say that the shared pain of this play is what heals us all. Sharing the pain. Sharing our truth. Lewis' writing is so grounded and truthful in every single beat. She's one of the masters of subtext. The shared humanity of her work makes it relevant forever.

The heart of this play seems to find the divine in the mundane. That's the way the light gets in.

Lewis' play is beautiful because it's normal, extraordinary because it's ordinary. Where we may often feel our own inadequacy to capture something that already exists, Lewis, like a weeping willow, shows resilient light peeking through sorrow in her play. I walked away from this work feeling renewed even in the recent sufferings of this world. I cannot recommend this play enough.

The pacing is gorgeous. The world feels ready to walk into. Reading E.M. Lewis is like watching an artist paint a landscape in lush, soothing colors, and gently, effortlessly carve out piercing, beautiful details. I was surprised how much I laughed out loud, but it makes sense - she writes grounded, complicated, hopeful people. They share their raw pain, and with that comes love, connection, humor. The way we get to hear all the beautiful unspoken things the characters think but never say is stunning. She gives the quiet souls a chance to be heard and seen.

Lewis displays her keen sense of humanity in this sweet and beautiful narrative play, that is spliced throughout with theatrical elements of light and sound. I love the assortment of souls that find themselves entwined here, and the through line of kindness, decency, generosity and love. It's a hopeful journey.

EM Lewis has such a gentleness about her words and phrases. A unexpected word said simply would bring instant tears, while a moment later I would laugh at yet another small word or phrase. The Japanese Garden is at once peaceful and hopefully romantic. Such a quiet, meaningful, honest piece of theatre. If you want your pulse to slow down, read it.

Lewis has given us a slice of humanity in all its tremors and hopes. There are shadows from sunlight, light hiding in darkness and people not knowing how to live with the cracks in their lives. How the Light Gets In brings us all hope in a difficult time. A lyrical, compassionate story of choosing to come together that will resonate with audiences.

A story of people at crossroads and the people they meet who help them move forward. A travel writer who doesn't travel; an architect thwarted by a simple but possibly impossible assignment; a teen runaway with a big heart; and a tattoo artist who is a good man. One character says "Sometimes I think the whole job is trying to put in windows where there used to be walls, so the light can get in." (p. 48). It's moving, gentle, surprising.

A touching play that handles a difficult subject matter with a lot of levity, compassion, and beauty. It ties together its themes artfully and creates a world that embraces the messy, complicated, disappointing parts of life without pushing you away. It's ultimately such a delight when these characters let you in.

A simple but eloquent play that, per its title, allows moments of levity and joy into a story in which every character struggles with a different kind of heartbreak. I saw Boston Court's production of HOW THE LIGHT GETS IN and was both entertained and moved throughout the play's well-paced 90 minutes. Lovely characters, lovely story, lovely experience!