Members of the Birmingham Royal Ballet in “Black Sabbath – The Ballet.” Photo by Johan Persson.
Birmingham Royal Ballet’s “Black Sabbath” at the Kennedy Center was an epic affair. Three acts of Black Sabbath arranged for full orchestra plus guitars, with additional music by Marko Nyberg, Christopher Austin, Joshua Hickin, and Sun Keting. There was also a small army of dancers and a sculpture of the Black Sabbath demon standing on top of a full sized upside down car, all in silver paint. The Brirish company celebrating the international superstardom of their hometown band was, if nothing else, spectacular.
…spectacular…a standing ovation from the packed house…all of the performers were fabulous…
A cheer went up from the audience as the opening vocals of “War Pigs” echoed across the Opera House. In black sleeveless unitards, the dancers felt aggressive and predatory. Marc Hayward, as the guitar god onstage alongside the dancers, was fantastic, but he had a hard time getting the crowd worked up as he tried to get them into a concert spirit. Despite being cajoled into a few brief rounds of enthusiastic applause, the vibe in the audience was more ballet than heavy metal. I particularly enjoyed the crisp and sparkling male pointe solo in the first Act. However, I thought the ending of the act, with its en masse fouetteés and turns in à la second, was a little bit over the top.
The second act was my personal favorite. It was the most introspective of the evening, scored with softer, more atmospheric music and featuring extended sections of dialogue take from interviews with the band. It also felt the most grounded in the score as the dancers counterpointed the spoken work without matching it like a cartoon.
Act II was a complete change of paradigm from the first, but the third act picked up where the second had left off, smooth and continuous. The wings had been lifted and now the entire back stage space, with lights and crew, and the offstage cast members was visible. The stage was now dominated by the huge silver sculpture, as the dancers rolled the platform back and forth. Each act of “Black Sabbath” featured a separate group of dancers but as the final act drew to a close, the guitar spirit drew the entire cast back on to the stage for a high energy finish.
Over all, the ballet was a mixed bag. It brought a standing ovation from the packed house, and all of the performers were fabulous, but the choreography itself was a little lacking. Rock and roll ballets are nothing new, Roland Petit was choreographing to Pink Floyd in the early 70s, and Joffery Ballet’s “Billboards,” set to the music of Prince, premiered to acclaim in 1993. “Black Sabbath” was not the first rock ballet to appear on the Kennedy Center’s lineup this season. Excerpts from Complexions Contemporary Ballet’s “For Crying Out Loud,” with music from U2, appeared as part of their mixed rep debut at the Center in March. As a genre work, “Black Sabbath” didn’t need to break new ground, but it’s choreographic structures felt surprisingly basic and repetitive, especially in Act I. The second and third acts did a better job of letting the dancers show what they were capable of, but the third act repeated a choreographic structure from earlier in the evening for the finale.
Running Time: Two hours and 10 minutes hours, including two 20-minute intermissions.
Advisory: Ages 10+. Contains archival voiceover that includes bleeped out swearing and conversation around the taking and using of drugs. Uses strobes and strobe-like effects.
“Black Sabbath” ran June 4-8, 2025 presented by Birmingham Royal Ballet at The Kennedy Center, 2700 F St NW, Washington, DC 20566. For more information and tickets for upcoming events at the Kennedy Center, call the Box Office at 202.467.4600 or please go online.
