Commencing with a Shiva Panchakshara Stothra by Adi Sankara, 'Nagendra Haraya', Valli set the pace for the evening. While describing Shiva and his attributes, she interspersed the lines with nritta passages. The item was lively with abhinaya given cursory treatment. 'Kann aavalanein yendan nadane', a varnam composed by the dancer jointly with Prema Ramamurthy in ragamalika, and rupaka talam was next. The nayika is full of love and longing for Shiva. She sees him in the sun, rain clouds, everywhere. Nritta and rhythm again dominated the varnam. Her sancharis were explicit but to the point. Valli had an excellent orchestra to support her: nattuvangam, Prema Ramamurthy, vocal, Shobana Swamy and Savita Narasimhan, mridangam, Shakthivel, violin, T.K.Padmanabhan, and flute, Srinivasan.

She performed a padam taken from Kantiamman poetry, 'Pillai Tamizh vaaraadh irindhal', wherein the deities are pictured in their infancy- Krishna, Shiva, and the Godess. 'Varege varagave marbil tavalre kulandhe, Kantimathi thaye varege....' were the words. Her next padam, 'Jeevanam jeevamritham', demonstrated the circle of life using water as a metaphor for life. Raindrops collect as a little stream, that flows into a river, which in turn empties out into the sea. Water is vapourized, completing the circle. Set to music by Prema Ramamurthy, it included the Gayathri mantram, Sandhya Vandanam, and passages from the Rig veda. Composed in myriad ragams like Hamsadwani, Malhar, Amritavarshani, Brindavanasaranga, Sindhu Bhairavi and Sahana, etc. the item was a treat to the eye and the ear. Particularly enchanting was the depiction of rain in Amritavarshini ragam with the rain clouds above, and the birds, peacocks, trees, and flowers, below, likened to a happy girl with anklets. Valli's depiction of the flow of water was very creative. A stream was the metaphor for a merry young woman. The meandering of the stream and it's flowing into the river, denoted life with it's ups and downs. And the merging of the river with the sea, as the last leg of the journey, alluded to a woman grown old. Water evaporating from the sea, signified the completion of the circle, that is, union with the Supreme.

Alarmel Valli concluded her recital with a racy thillana in Kundalavarali ragam, Adi talam, by Dr. Balamurali Krishna. Her energetic nritta dominated the programme. It was exhilarating to watch, but one was left with the nagging feeling of missing out on the finer aspects of abhinaya, that Valli is quite capable of.