An acclaimed performance from America makes its international debut at the White Bear Theatre.
“IN SOME DARK VALLEY: The Testimony of Reverend Brand,” has been called “memorable theatre… certainly of our time, and every other time as well” (Deborah Klugman, StageRaw Los Angeles) and “delightfully dark… a powerful and highly entertaining show” (Dan Ruth, LA Hidden Gems).
One moonlit night, Reverend Brand, a fiery post Civil War circuit preacher, emerges from the shadowy mountains of Appalachia to weave a tale of religious fervor set against a landscape scarred by war, poverty, and disease – a story born from a collective history that shines a light on rare moments of tender and resilient redemption.
Robert Bailey’s solo performance grapples with the inevitable clash between an unyielding vision of moral rectitude and the tragic personal destruction it leaves in its wake. Bailey embodies multiple characters and sings captivating traditional songs handed down through generations of Southerners.
The 65-minute solo show, written and performed by Robert Bailey and directed by Billy Siegenfeld, pulls the audience into an experience that is both haunting and illuminating in its relevance to today.
We sat down with Robert Bailey to learn more.
Can you tell us what inspired In Some Dark Valley?
I was originally captivated by the original field recordings, made by folklorist Alan Lomax and others in the middle of the 20th century, of white and black Southerners singing and playing their instruments in churches, on farms, in prisons and on front porches. There was an authenticity that I, as someone born and raised in the South, had never encountered before in this raw unsophisticated fashion. I wanted to create a theatre piece incorporating some of this music, and at some point I decided to work on it as a solo performance.
How did you approach developing the ideas for what has become the final piece?
I entered into a prolonged period of research that included readings about the Civil War period and the years afterward, the novels of Flannery O’Connor, Woody Guthrie’s autobiography, Bob Dylan’s Chronicles Volume One, poetry by James Dickey… anything that seemed related to my search. At the same time, events in the United States were transpiring that bothered me, such as the Unite the Right March in Charlottesville and the attack on the Capitol; I wanted to confront the roots of a particular mindset that seemed to come from a severe brand of moral certainty. Henrik Ibsen’s verse play BRAND, the story of a fanatical preacher, provided the narrative hook: I was able to transform the character into a stern Appalachian circuit preacher, circa 1870.
How did the collaboration with director Billy Siegenfeld come around and what is it like handing over a little creative control of a piece you’ve written and perform in?
Billy is one of my oldest friends from our undergraduate days at Brown University. He is a distinguished Professor of Theatre at Northwestern University, an expert in dance and movement, a director and performer and the founder of Jump Rhythm, an extraordinary theatrical dance collective. I trust his instincts implicitly and was extremely fortunate that he took an interest in my project and was willing to work in a collaborative way over a two and half year period. His direction and dramaturgy were invaluable, and it was, for me, like being directed by a brilliant, loving brother.
How would you describe the journey that Reverend Brand goes on through the piece?
The character emerges from the darkness of the forest one moonlit night and realizes the audience is waiting to hear his “testimony”: what he experienced, how he came to take the actions he did, and what the consequences were of his inflexible approach to salvation. In telling this tale, he incorporates multiple characterizations of the people he interacted with, and experiences a crisis of faith that forces him into a final reckoning.
The show features traditional songs that have been handed down through the generations. What can you tell us about these and how they fit into the piece?
In embodying Reverend Brand’s narrative, I sing hymns and ballads born in the British Isles and transported to the backwoods of America centuries ago. Their raw power and authentic expression of emotion lift the narrative to a certain level of intensity that permits the audience to enter into the character’s unfamiliar mindset.
Why do you believe this story is relevant to an audience in 2026?
In my country and in many places throughout the globe, there is a dangerous attraction to severe and morally based solutions, bigotry, intolerance of others and the search for leadership that too often results in authoritarianism. IN SOME DARK VALLEY attempts to drill down into the roots of one variation on this behavior while offering the possibility of redemption and grace.
What was the first piece of theatre you remember having a big impact on you?
I was still in my teens when I saw James Earl Jones in Howard Sackler’s THE GREAT WHITE HOPE at Arena Stage in Washington D.C. It was the most dramatic demonstration I had ever had of live theatre’s visceral power to confront audiences with an exploration of social issues and of the impact an actor could have. Later on, the Polish Laboratory Theatre’s productions of AKROPOLIS and APOCALYPSIS CUM FIGURIS overwhelmed me with their unrivaled ensemble playing.
What keeps you inspired?
So many things: directors and performers past and present (Bergman, Cassavetes, Cynthia Erivo in Jesus Christ Superstar); the great performers of the folk revival of the 60’s and 70’s on both sides of the Atlantic (Anne Briggs, Sandy Denny and Fairport Convention, Dave Van Ronk and Bob Dylan); theatre innovators like Michael Chekhov, Jerzy Grotowski and Zbigniew Cynkutis; the connection I make with audiences and talking with them afterwards; and working with my students in the School of Dramatic Arts at the University of Southern California.
What would you hope someone takes away from seeing In Some Dark Valley?
As audiences witness the spiritual dilemma of Reverend Brand and travel with him on his difficult journey, I hope they may reflect on the path he’s taken and find some form of relevance to their own yearnings and experiences. A reviewer in Los Angeles called the play “ a ballad of the spiritually blinded”; perhaps through this haunted pastor we can all realize, as life confronts us with difficulty, how easily we might lose our own way.
In Some Dark Valley runs at The Lion and Unicorn Theatre in London from 31st March until 4th April 2026. Tickets are available from https://www.whitebeartheatre.co.uk/whatson/in-some-dark-valley
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