Birmingham Royal Ballet Black Sabbath – The Ballet
Play TrailerTurn up the volume on Birmingham’s musical legacy as Black Sabbath meets ballet
Sparks will undoubtedly fly in this intriguing new response to Black Sabbath’s music and legacy – the first true heavy metal ballet experience.
Black Sabbath forged their unique sound in Birmingham Royal Ballet’s home city. In Black Sabbath – The Ballet expect a spectacular theatrical performance, featuring thrilling dance and original Black Sabbath recordings (including Paranoid, War Pigs, Iron Man and the eponymous Black Sabbath) alongside full orchestrations of their work (another first) and original new orchestral compositions inspired by the sound of metal – all performed live by the Royal Ballet Sinfonia. If you weren’t a Sabbath fan to begin with you will be!
Carlos Acosta was drawn to both the band’s work and its musical legacy as the originators of Heavy Metal. This full-evening ballet promises to be a unique undertaking with three composers and three choreographers, led by renowned Choreographer Pontus Lidberg (whose work has been performed by the Swedish Royal Ballet and the Paris Opera Ballet) and Composer Chris Austin (whose work includes orchestrating the White Stripes music for Wayne McGregor’s Chroma) working alongside award-winning writer Richard Thomas (Jerry Springer, The Opera) to create an extraordinary metal symphony over three acts. Black Sabbath themselves have been closely involved in developing this unique collaboration.
Header image © Perou
Audio Described Performances
There are a limited number of Stalls seats reserved for partially sighted patrons, and headsets available for those wishing to listen to the audio description, please email tickets@sadlerswells.com if you wish to book these optionsTouch Tour
To accompany the Audio Described performance, visually impaired patrons can go on a Touch Tour before the performance. Your tour guide will take you backstage, or onto the stage itself, to feel costumes and pieces of the set and learn more about the production. To find out touch tour times, please contact our Ticket Office at tickets@sadlerswells.com or by calling 020 7863 8000.Black Sabbath have always been innovators and never been predictable, and it doesn’t come any more unpredictable than this
Tommy Iommi, Black Sabbath co-founder and guitarist
Black Sabbath is probably Birmingham’s biggest export, the most famous, and infamous, cultural entity to ever emerge from the city so I was naturally drawn to the idea of a collaboration between what most people might think are the most unlikely of partners.
Carlos Acosta