Valerie Zhao is a senior at Boston University pursuing a BFA in Lighting Design. She works in many forms of theater, from operas to musicals to dance shows to conferences. Her artistry is deeply informed by the process of analysis and the translation of text and music into visual aesthetics. Thematically, she is interested in the impact of nostalgia and memory on our consumption of art and how artists manipulate those subjects in their creations. Val is the proud mother to one male betta fish and is fond of cats with protruding snouts. She enjoys drinking passionfruit boba tea and eating beef udon noodles in her spare time (which is rather limited).