The Testament of Ann Lee true story: How accurate is the historical musical?

It’s unlikely that many knew much about the story of the Shaker movement past their distinctive architecture and furniture prior to watching Mona Fastvold’s historical, musical drama, The Testament of Ann Lee, which this week finally arrives in UK cinemas after premiering overseas in the US at the end of 2025.

Fastvold first came across the incredible story of the Shakers and their founding leader, Ann Lee, after she discovered a Shaker hymn while wrapping up her 2020 period drama, The World to Come. From there, she went on to immerse herself in one of the most radical yet unexplored periods of American history.

The project, however, was not an easy sell, with Fastvold initially struggling to get it made due to little interest from the industry, and studios wary of backing such an audacious feat.

What emerged, though, is a modern masterpiece – anchored by Amanda Seyfried's stunning lead performance as Ann Lee. But, this is very much an ensemble effort, supported by Daniel Blumberg's monumental reworking of Shaker hymns and Celia Rowlson-Hall's choreography, creating a dynamic work of visceral cinema — especially considering its modest $10 million budget.

Fastvold has described the film as a "speculative retelling" of Ann Lee's life, elegantly tracing the Shaker leader from her early beginnings in Manchester, England, to her belief in divine expression, her embrace of song and dance, and her pacifist response to those who opposed her progressive ideals. "I was just truly fascinated that there was this woman with these radical ideas and that it was part of American history," Fastvold told the BBC.

So, if you’re wondering how closely the events of the film follow the real life of Mother Ann, keep reading.

The Testament of Ann Lee true story

Ann Lee was born in Manchester on 29 February 1736, and was the second in a family of eight children, including five boys and three girls. Her father was a blacksmith named John, though little is known about her mother, who is played by Maria Sand in The Testament of Ann Lee.

Ann’s parents were members of a branch of the Quaker sect, the Religious Society of Friends, and records indicate that she was baptised on 1 June 1742 in what is now Manchester Cathedral.

Ann received little education and was illiterate throughout her life. In her early youth, she worked in a textile factory, then at 20 years old, she began working as a cook in a Manchester infirmary.

In 1758, Ann joined a small group of religious dissenters led by Jane and James Wardley, at the time mockingly referred to as the 'Shaking Quakers', for their behaviour during their worship, which included singing, shaking, dancing and trembling, which they believed shook off sins and evil. "These are human beings that needed to move and sing their way through worship, because their lives depended on it," Seyfried has explained.

Crucially, the Shakers believed that the second coming of Christ would be in female form and believed in gender equality – a radical idea in the 18th century. Fastvold has considered Ann Lee one of the 'earliest feminists', "I'm sure there are many others we don't know about."

In 1762, Ann married Abraham Standerin, a blacksmith who worked for Ann's father. It is believed that Ann was persuaded to marry Abraham by her parents, and Ann herself never desired the marriage. Between 1762 and 1766, Ann would go on to give birth to four children, none of whom would survive their early infancy.

Fastvold herself has spoken about Ann's reaction to the loss of her children, explaining to Creative Screenwriting: "It came from a place of survival where she was said, 'I cannot mother my children. I’ve lost my children. I will mother the entire world.' And from there came this idea that I’m going to create a community that is safe, and the place where you can feel safe to worship and express yourself and to work really hard at creating things.

"Ultimately it’s the idea of what can this leadership be as a mother and how can you transcend from trauma into that?"

After her final child died, Ann became increasingly more active in the Shaker movement, eventually leading to the group starting to disrupt rival churches.

In 1770, Ann was imprisoned for 30 days, during which time she had a vision of Adam, Eve and the Garden of Eden, which led her to the conclusion that sexual cohabitation was the root of all evil. Once reporting this back to the sect, celibacy soon became a key tenet of the movement. From this point, she became known to her followers as Mother Ann, who believed her to be the female embodiment of Christ's second coming.

Several years later, Ann became convinced that she should carry the Shaker movement to America, and shortly after, Ann and several members of the movement (including her brother William and cousin Nancy) sailed from Liverpool to New York on the ship Mariah.

On 6 August 1774, the group arrived in America. Around this time, Ann separated from her husband Abraham, who had refused to commit to the Shaker rule of celibacy, and who soon remarried.

In 1779, the Shakers relocated to Niskayuna, where they built homes, raised crops and began working on art, and soon started recruiting new members to the sect.

During the American Revolution, Ann Lee and her fellow Shakers took a pacifist stance, refusing to join either side, and declined to sign an oath of allegiance, which soon aroused some suspicion among revolutionary authorities. Ann was imprisoned, accused of being a British sympathiser, but after her brother William Lee asked General James Clinton of Albany to write a letter to the New York governor, she was eventually freed.

The group then travelled to New England, preaching and recruiting, where they began to face more opposition for their beliefs, including several physical attacks, and Ann was frequently accused of witchcraft. During one particular riot in Petersham, Massachusetts, Ann was dragged down, beaten and had her clothes ripped off.

It is said that such tribulations and exhaustion hastened the demises of both Ann and her brother – and on 21 July 1784, William died.

Following the death of her brother, it was recorded that Ann Lee became somewhat dejected. Her final days were spent "singing in unknown tongues" in her rocking chair.

On 8 September 1784, 10 years after arriving in America, Mother Ann Lee died at the age of 48.

Her final words were said to have been: "I see Brother William coming in a golden chariot, to take me home."

Speaking of the attacks the Shakers suffered, Fastvold explained to EW: "After she died, they realised that there were fractures in her skull from all the various beatings that she received.

"So it's heartbreaking and horrible, but truly, that level of brutality that she and the other Shakers experienced, if I were to include all of that, it would be a story only about that. And I think the story had a lot more to offer."

After a celebration of her life, Ann was buried in a wooden coffin the Shaker Cemetery within the Watervliet Shaker Historic District in Colonie, New York. She did not live to see the peak of the Shaker movement in the early 19th century, when thousands of supporters lived across the US.

As of August 2025, there are three members of the Shaker movement remaining, all of whom reside in Sabbathday Lake, Maine.

The Testament of Ann Lee is now available to watch in UK cinemas.

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