‘The Testament of Ann Lee’ Makes Shaker Worship a Physical, Musical Language

"The Testament of Ann Lee," directed by Mona Fastvold and starring Amanda Seyfried, dramatizes the founder of the Shakers and makes dance and music the film’s primary means of storytelling. Fastvold and choreographer Celia Rowlson-Hall center the Shakers’ ecstatic movement—historically described by the filmmakers as prolonged, rave-like dancing—as a form of prayer and communal expression rather than theatrical performance.

The film traces Ann Lee’s life, including the traumas that led the group to embrace celibacy and a commitment to gender equality, and shows how the choreography evolves from wild, improvisational movement to the cleaner, steadier lines associated with Shaker design after the community settles in America.

Music by Daniel Blumberg draws on Shaker melodies and is integrated with the dancers’ breaths and sounds; a stormy Atlantic crossing, in which the group sings the hymn "All Is Summer," is staged as a prayerful, physical act of endurance. Seyfried, who had sung and danced in earlier films, says the project changed how she uses her body and voice.

Rehearsals emphasized intention over technical precision, and the cast mixed trained and untrained movers so the choreography would feel like lived experience. Rowlson-Hall devised movement from historical images and from imagination, aiming to unlock emotional truth rather than create polished routines.

Key Topics

Culture, Ann Lee, Amanda Seyfried, Mona Fastvold, Celia Rowlson-hall, Shakers