No Only

No Only
Fernando González and Sophie Zmorrod - photo by Tania Aparicio

written & composed by Lane Dombois directed by and developed with Nic Adams co-developed with Fernando Gonzalez and Sophie Zmorrod

Synopsis

No Only is a musical about how perception and affection change environments—from the subatomic particles comprising living cells to astronomic objects pulling and pushing one another through space. One character, Dust—an explorer and romantic—mourns the collapse of the earth. Wind encounters her and interrogates her mourning. Yet resistance to his cold questioning brings a radical environmental shift, forcing both Wind and Dust to reinterpret what it means to be and not be in an unpredictable, cruel universe. Without the tools for a neat and comprehensive interpretation, without the autonomy to control how time evolves—they are left only to each other's ideas and hopes. What use are ideas and hopes, when the end is inevitably coming?

Performance History

Album release/design installation event
A twilit guided walk to an off-grid shipping container, a design exhibition, and starlit return to the ferry
August 9th to 20th, 2023 @ Governor’s Island

No Only walk near fort
audience and Lane Dombois - photo by Tania Aparicio

Hosts: Nic Adams and Lane Dombois
Music direction/arrangement: Lane Dombois
Sound design: Lane Dombois
Recorded performers: Fernando Gonzalez and Sophie Zmorrod
Costume design: Sandra Bell and Inga Lee Black
Lighting design: Christina Tang
Animation/puppetry design: Leonie Bell
Illustration design: Brian Hendricks
Venue: Governor’s Island and caribBEING
Support: The Puffin Foundation & Brooklyn Arts Council

No Only walk near fort
Nic Adams - photo by Tania Aparicio
Remotely-recorded Dying Stars video

premiered March 14th, 2022 as a part of
Out of an Abundance of Caution: Volume 52!

Directed/edited by Nic Adams Featuring Lane Dombois, Fernando Gonzalez, and Sophie Zmorrod
Cast Album
No Only walk near fort
released September 8, 2023

Sophie Zmorrod - vocals (Dust)
Fernando Gonzalez - vocals (Wind)
Nic Adams - direction
Lane Dombois - acoustic guitar, synthesizers, production
Sandra Bell - costumes
Inga Lee Black - costumes
Tania Aparicio - photography, photo editing

6. The Universe Wants to Be the Universe

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11. This Song is Called "A Couple Ribs"

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15. Where We Can't be Followed by the End

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16. I Am Only Dust

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Hear Full Album
Tracklist
  1. We Open Our Eyes
  2. On the Shore
  3. Cinders, Embers, and Ash
  4. Just a Memory of a Laugh
  5. One Million Mirrors, No Me Reflected
  6. The Universe Wants to Be the Universe
  7. In the Void 1
  8. Brightest Beacons - Dying Stars
  9. In the Void 2
  10. This Scene is Called “A Couple Ribs”
  11. This Song is Called “A Couple Ribs”
  12. In the Void 3
  13. There Are Two Humans
  14. Brightest Beacons - Shinier Polymers
  15. Where We Can’t Be Followed by the End
  16. I Am Only Dust
  17. On the Shore
  18. Brightest Beacons - Blooming Algae
Thanks

Shelley V. Worrell & caribBEING; Juan Pablo Siles & Zoë Van Cott with Governors Island; Levin Valayil; Jack Adams; Avery Leigh Draut; Laura Barati & Danny Urseti; Lauren Miller, Theresa Buchheister, & Jess Almasy; Brick Aux; David Herskovits; Target Margin Theater; Jess Applebaum; Anjali Rose

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