The staging in Valley of Astonishment was very simple, which leaves much to the imagination and viewers’ perception. It featured 3 wooden chairs, a movable wooden table, and 1 coat hanger (all uncolored). The actors/actress used chairs as their props; for example, rocking the chair like a cradle. The staging sets the scene for many settings: a home, cognitive neuroscience office, theatre, and  Sammy’s mind (with the imaginary blackboard), and John Kelly’s office. In John Kelly’s office, Kelly places his feet on the table to indicate informality and characterize him. In the Office of Cognitive Neuroscience, Sammy describes the pictures of brains and doctors’ nameplates, even though they are not all there. But since she is so descriptive, there is no need for fancy props or staging. The Dr.’s assistant knocked on the wooden table to signify knocking on a door. I loved the part where the table was the medical equipment, the brain scanner and how it produced the images of brain activity on paper. It was very clever. Synonymous with all the imaginary props, the brain scan helmet was imaginary. Exaggerated movements helped depict it. in the painting scene, the man used under the chairs as the paint dishes, and the broom stick as a different brush, and splattered fake paint into the air which was supposedly a large canvas. Sometimes the chairs are unimportant, and seem to “disappear” from our view because they are not being used, like during the John Kelly magic show. When John Kelly was moving through the stage (in the back near the audience), he hit his foot on a metal bar which was clever and humorous. During the magic show, the table had a black cloth. In the Finale, a single chair with the musician playing the Chinese flute really puts the emphasis on him and his simple but touching music.