The history and legacy of the Black Sabbath, celebrated by a ballet

The history and legacy of the Black Sabbath, celebrated by a ballet

ByJohn

Between the shadows of the factories and the smoke of the steel mills, Birmingham It stands out not only as the beating heart of industrial England. It is also the city ​​that saw the Heavy Metal borncradling a musical revolution that has changed the history of rock forever. Starting from here, in the capital of West Midlands, i Black Sabbath they shaped a Dark and powerful sound language who still resonates as today collective identity of the city. In recent months, this link has become even more intense, among the celebrations of the event “Back to the Beginning“And the mourning for the Disappearance of Ozzy Osbournewhich took place on 22 July. Birmingham then turned into a place of memory and devotionwelcoming a new imposing 40-meter long mural made by Daniel Russell-Ahern (Mr Murals) near New Street Station and a free photo gallery in Victoria Square, both dedicated to the “Paranoid” band, in addition to the first exhibition in the world dedicated to Ozzy, entitled “Working Class Hero” and set up at the Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery. In this context of tributes and cultural identities, the city then returns to welcome A tribute to the Black Sabbath who unites two apparently distant worlds: that of the viscerality and immediacy of the Heavy Metal, and the rarefied and disciplined one of the classical dance.

By collecting the lesson of Roland Petit with Pink Floyd, by Maurice Béjart with Queen, Martha Clarke with Vasco Rossi and, more recently, by Philippe Kratz with Thom Yorke and Radiohead, comes to life “Black Sabbath – The Ballet“. The music of the Band of Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward is therefore pushed beyond the boundaries of rock, in dialogue with the elegance of the ballet. The power of the Black Sabbath thus turns into the spinning column of a show that aims to translate of Birmingham Royal Ballet dancers The essence of metal together with the history of the band.

After debut on 23 September 2023 With a show that saw participation as a protagonist Tony Iommiwho was directly involved in the project as a musical consultant, “Black Sabbath – The Ballet” was enthusiastically accepted not only in his birthplace, at the Vittorian style theater Birmingham Hippodrome, but also by the public of London and overseas.

Two years after the debut, The show is now back on stage For a new series of dates in Birmingham, which ended yesterday, September 27, before a tour in the United Kingdom scheduled until next November.

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Born from the collaboration between the British composer Christopher Austin and the Swedish choreographer Pontus Lidberg, the show consists of Three acts built on eight Black Sabbath songs in a riotish version and performed live by the Royal Ballet Symphony orchestra. Each moment of the show transforms an appearance, a story or parenthesis of the Sabbath into dance, approaching the work of three composers and three different choreographers.

The first acton a composition by Marko Nyberg, is an ode at the Heavy Metal. The choreography is by the young Cuban dancer Raúl Reinoso, who makes his own neoclassical and contemporary dance lesson of the great William Forsythe, so the classic ballet is released here from academic rigidity to embrace executive energy and speed. It is the only voice of Ozzy Osbourne that intones “War Pigs“, Transmitted by the speakers, to score the beginning of the show. The first part of the show tells the sound, the spirit, the darkness and the joy that prove to be from music through sixteen dancers dressed in black. The Black Sabbath songs change shape, transforming into an instrumental version with the live orchestra, which among the winds and the arches also welcomes the magical triad. guitar-basso-batteria.Iron Man“, On stage even a guitarist appears who, played by a dancer, represents a sort of” guitar spirit “, thanks to which the essence of the unique sound of the band comes to life. Subsequently, an orchestral version of”Solitude“Leads to the delicacy and intimacy of a step by two, before”Paranoid“Call all the dancers on stage for the final choral moment.

The second actentrusted to the Brazilian choreographer Cassi Abranches and with the compositions of Sun Keting, he focuses instead On the story of Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward. To honor the legacy of the Black Sabbath, the recorded voices of the four musicians and Sharon Osbourne, taken from different interviewsecho in the theater room. In counterpoint to the movements of contemporary dance, the outside the group narration of the members offer glimpses of their lives and the origins of the Black Sabbath. The orchestra re -elaborates the song here “Black Sabbath“, Accompanying twelve dancers who metaphorically represent both the young people of today and the members of the band. On the delicate instrumental of”Orchid“, Tony Iommi’s voice recalls his life, that terrible factory accident that mutilated his fingers and his revolutionary way of playing the guitar, while a solo dancer responds to the rhythms of his breath and his words. He follows an solo for a dancer, while he feels a recording of Ozzy Osbourne who tries to describe the internal mechanisms of his mind: impossible for the public and to hold back Applause.Planet caravan”, Before the conclusion entrusted to a version for orchestra of”Sabbath Bloody Sabbath“.

The third and last act, entitled “Everybody is a fan“, He wants to embody the band’s inheritance and to transmit that it means today for people. On the choreography of Potus Lidberg, a large group of dancers invade the scene wearing the Black Sabbath T -shirts, dancing their songs. Some songs from the first two acts are again protagonists, in new shapes rearranged by Christopher Austin. Themes taken from”Iron Man“,”Sabbath Bloody Sabbath”, War Pigs” And “Paranoid“They return to make themselves heard, but there is also room for”Laguna Sunrise“In a dialogue of musicality between two instruments, the guitar itself and the body of a dancer. The conclusion then arrives in an explosion of celebration, closing A fresco in which a real tribute takes shape to the history and inheritance of the Black Sabbath.

Here are the songs of the Black Sabbath included in the show:

  • War Pigs (Paranoid, 1970)
  • Iron Man (Paranoid, 1970)
  • Solita (Master of Reality, 1971)
  • Paranoid (Paranoid, 1970)
  • Black Sabbath (Black Sabbath, 1970)
  • Orchid (Master of Reality, 1971)
  • Sabbath Bloody Sabbath (Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, 1973)
  • Laguna Sunrise (vol. 4, 1972)

John
John

With an untamed passion and deep, eclectic knowledge of music, John is the soul of RadioWise UK. Having worked in the music industry for over two decades, his vision was to create a platform that embodies the love and respect for music. John is known for his great attention to detail and insatiable thirst for discovering new talents and music genres.