In 2006, Antony and the Johnsons teamed with renowned artist Charles Atlas for a series of ambitious stage shows. Each intimate performance saw Antony accompanied by a string orchestra and visual montages of 13 women. Dubbed Turning, the performances were then documented in a 2011 film by Atlas. After being screened at various film festivals in recent years, the documentary will finally receive a DVD release on November 11th through Secretly Canadian.
Antony discussed the project in an issued statement:
“I would describe Turning as some of the most significant work of my career. Charles Atlas and I spent seven years producing the film and another year and a half showing the film at select festivals. In the last three years especially, the recognition of transgendered people and the resurgence of feminist consciousness has exploded in popular culture around the world. We planted some seeds for this zeitgeist in 2006, when I travelled with thirteen courageous women across Europe and presented the concert Turning, exploring the intersection between images of contemporary trans-femininity and visions of pioneering future feminist artists such as Kembra Pfahler and Johanna Constantine. We shared this circle of modern femininity with the world, bringing it from the late night stages of NYC to some of the most highly regarded theaters in Europe.”
The film comes accompanied by a full live album of Antony’s November 2006 performance at London’s Barbican, as well as two studio recordings of “Whose Are These” and “Tears Tears Tears”, which were originally released on picture disc in 2006. As a preview, listen to the included version of “Daylight and the Sun”, plus watch the film’s trailer, below.
Turning Tracklist:
01. Everything Is New
02. My Lord, My Love
03. Cripple and the Starfish
04. For Today I Am A Boy
05. Where Is My Power?
06. Spiralling
07. Find The Rhythm Of Your Love
08. I Fell In Love With A Dead Boy
09. Bird Gerhl
10. Kiss My Name
11. Daylight And The Sun
12. One Dove
13. Hope There’s Someone
14. Twilight
15. You Are My Sister
16. Whose Are These
17. Tears Tears Tears