Sia sings – belts, rather – with impressive range and unapologetic emotion. 12 year old dancer Maddie Zeigler commits so fully and physically to the lyrics’ narrative that, watching, you quickly forget her age and 3 + minutes later realize you’ve been mesmerized by a middle schooler. I came across the new video for Sia’s “Big Girls Cry” on, of all things, NPR.com If you haven’t seen this artist’s previous two videos with Zeigler dancing, they’re very much worth watching right now. “Chandelier” consists of Zeigler moving expertly and shockingly all over a barren house, and “Elastic Heart” features Zeigler and Shia LeBeouf in a beautiful, unsettling, choreographed cage fight. They’re not exactly SFW, or for kids who ask questions. Enjoy their talent and the visual metaphors here:
Although the video is harder to watch, “Big Girls Cry” is my favorite of these releases yet. Evocative and simple, this single-take show exhibits the both singer and the dancer perfectly. It’s mostly facial and hand gestures. (Oh yeah, and a little strangling a kid, sort of. I know. Sorry.) Sia unabashedly sings:
I may cry ruining my make up/ Wash away all the things you’ve taken/ And I don’t care if I don’t look pretty/ Big girls cry when their hearts are breaking.
This singer/dancer/choreography/lyric combo is a beautiful match. The refrain wouldn’t stir anything inside you, were it sung by a half-voiced sopranino. (Ellie Goulding, back away.) If Zeigler didn’t commit so fully, this would be a weird kid making faces in the bathroom mirror. (Not that that isn’t fun, too.) This video is instead many things, including – according to YouTube comments: “sad”, “creepy as hell” and “perfect”.
Being very much over the ethereal voices of breathy female singers, I’m all about this artist’s voice. Zeigler, comfortable in her skin and gifted well past her 12 years, doesn’t seem to care if she looks pretty, either.