“…I found myself grasping for words to explain the weirdness and intensity of her performance. Nothing about my view had felt narrowed or zoomed-in on. McGuire made the piece feel less like a solo and more like a large ensemble work danced by one. Set to a dramatic orchestral score by Alexander Balanescu, Anthem looks like a Peter Greenaway movie on fast-forward, and McGuire seems to play a dozen parts that span centuries and styles. At one point, she is muttering to herself with the mannered gesticulations of a Baroque courtesan, an effect enhanced by her alabaster face and staccato acting. At another, she looks edgy and modern, shifting into a sequence of athletic splits on the floor.”
- Martha Schabas, The Globe and Mail (10-12-15)
“Her ability to go instantly from light to dark, still to explosive, silly to deep, is impressive and continually startling… McGuire, though, throws off flashes of virtuosity from nowhere, blasting fast jumps or other large explosive devices so quickly they seem improbable. The power in her body is remarkable, as is the sheer volume of movement in this piece and the evening...”
CREDITS
Choreographer: Sharon B. Moore
Composer: Alexander Balanescu
Costume Design: Katharine Mallinson
Performer: Belinda McGuire
Premiere: New York City, 2011 - “The Heist Project”
Length: 21:00
About the Work: Stirring, mysterious and tremendously physical, Moore’s Anthem for the Living unleashes deep layers of McGuire through textured and magnetic movement, which synthesizes dance, theatre and circus to music by Alexander Balanescu.
