Developed in various iterations by LACDC's former Artistic Director Genevieve Carson since 2016, The Only Constant is an evening length work that explores the delicate line between composure and chaos. Featuring the classic compositions of Bach, Mozart, Handel and Chopin, the score is enhanced and distorted by Los Angeles composer Robert Amjärv. The resulting work is at once absurd, graceful, heartbreaking, and ironic.
Through her direction, Carson aims to capture the profundity of human existence—the solitude of individuality and how our paths can be nudged off course and altered by the happenstance of meeting others. The Only Constant embodies the feeling of juxtaposition that defines human existence and illuminates the fleeting moments of beauty that give value to life’s perpetual struggle. The dancers are challenged to grapple with feelings of frustration and exhaustion, and ultimately required to question their own motivation to engage.
Press
Podcast inspired by "The Only Constant" from Annett Bone, The DancePreneuring Studio
The piece left me with the space to question my patterns, friendships, and goals, while examining our endless desire to escape reality. The Only Constant clearly confirmed that contemporary dance thrives in Los Angeles. -- Matthew Shaffer, LA Dance Chronicle
Carson’s work is profoundly moving, a testament to the human spirit. In the city of Los Angeles, where vulnerability is often pushed aside in favour of perfection, The Only Constant brings humanity center stage. -- Gillian Ebersole, Bachtrack.com
All four (dancers) were remarkable, in this often humorous piece that required split-second timing. Using gesture as metaphor, the dancers grabbed each other, pushed and pulled, fell onto and lifted one another. -- Laura Bleiberg, Emphasis Dance
The work was so subtle in its slip into insanity that it was a while before the audience relaxed into the humor of the work. The dancers were convincing, athletic, unapologetic, and darn-right funny. -- Beth Megill, LA Dance Review
Genevieve Carson is a very musical dance artist who understands form and subtlety. Her musicality is evident in how she physically illustrates the music of J.S. Bach and W.A. Mozart, while weaving her own rhythmic phrases in and around theirs. Carson gently introduces humor while exposing different layers of human behaviors (...) the dance opened with beautiful solos (…) a quirky, beautifully performed and often entertaining work. -- Jeff Slayton, L.A. Dance Chronicle
The dancers were playing a game of will, exertion and control (and a humorous one at that), refusing to ‘stay in their lane’. -- Dance Commentary by Heather Desaulniers
