Lucy Guerin’s One Single Action in an Ocean of Everything will travel to France this September, joining the 21st Biennale de la danse de Lyon as part of the Showcase Australia program.
The work will be presented alongside pieces by Marrugeku, Joel Bray, Amrita Hepi, Melanie Lane, and Prue Lang, curated by Angela Conquet. Performed by Max Burgess and Rachel Coulson, the duet takes the stage on 17 September.
One Single Action explores themes of overload, decisive change, and the impact of extreme actions on human connection. Two dancers traverse a narrow path, in and out of sync, navigating conflict and harmony while attempting to interrupt the acceleration of modern life. The choreography combines hectic sequences with improvisation and characterisation, offering audiences both intensity and intimacy.
Following Guerin’s large-scale works PENDULUM (2021) and NEWRETRO (2023), this return to a smaller-scale duet recalls the intimacy of her celebrated Split. The Guardian’s Tim Byrne described the piece as “experimental, whip-smart choreography focused on a singular endeavour that will linger in the mind.”
Supported by Lucy Guerin Inc’s Commissioning Circle, and made possible by the generous backing of the late Chloe Munro AO and WXYZ Studios, One Single Action will now share its Australian voice on an international stage.
The Biennale de la danse, founded in 1984, transforms Lyon and the wider Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region into a global meeting point for dance. This year’s program features 40 shows, including 24 premieres, exploring urgent ecological, political, and social themes through movement as a universal language.