Black Sabbath – The Ballet: hard rock with a soft centre

Birmingham Royal Ballet and Black Sabbath are two of Birmingham’s greatest cultural exports and now they are on a European tour together before heading to the US next year. Elegant young women in black leather jackets formed a procession from the nearby tram stop to the Grand Théâtre de la Ville de Luxembourg – the audience decidedly more bunhead than metalhead – to decide whether this unlikely fusion rocked or not.

Divided into three evenly timed acts, from three individual choreographers, despite euphoric moments the overall mood was far more mellow than anticipated. There is an informality to much of what’s on offer, from the spontaneous party pieces like chaîné turns that whirl across the stage, to the casual look of the dancers in leotards and band t-shirts rocking out with guitarist Marc Hayward. The stage is bare and there are no rules here.

Act 1 loosely focuses on the union of heavy metal and ballet. All of Sabbath’s most recognisable hits feature (I’m told) and they lend themselves surprisingly beautifully to orchestral interpretation. On stage, a corps of sixteen dancers move in unison. Raúl Reinoso’s choreography is simple, the stuff of ballet class drills; tendus and pliés, peppered with pirouettes, but in these nervy opening moments it looks a little messy and under rehearsed. It’s improved however by the individual contributions, most notably Tzu-Chao Chou’s explosive solo, the male Principal confident dancing en pointe. The mood shifts then in a memorable pas de deux to the ballad Solitude, involving the longest stage kiss you’re likely to ever see. Yaoqian Shang and Javier Rojas are joined at the mouth throughout as they contort themselves into an array of aesthetically pleasing poses and stretches. It’s a gentle, heartwarming number, and not at all what I expected to see from a celebration of the band Black Sabbath.

Act 2 (The Band) is the more distinctive of the three acts and focuses on the backstories of the band with their voiceovers telling tales of lost fingers and cocaine bills, although it fails to garner much of a response from the European audience. The pointe shoes are off, replaced by double denim and plimsolls. Not all of the dancers look at ease with bent knees and freestyle boogieing but Regal Hutsell is a standout, full of groove and flair, later Céline Gittens and Tyrone Singleton are slick and soulful in their partnership.

Of course Act 3 had to be a celebration of the fans, with choreographer Pontus Lidberg using elements of all that went before coming together for a joyful finale. The fusion of the orchestra and the original songs work best here. Gone are the soft, reflective moments, dancers wrestle with life-sized vinyl records, the Black Sabbath demon is visible on top of an upturned silver car for reasons I was not quite sure. Chou and Gittens are back, along with Miki Mizutani and Riku Ito who’s small stature is made up for in pure energy and athleticism.

Hayward is also back, guitar riffing atop those vinyl records and the dancers once again need to rock out and they gallantly commit, but it’s far more rewarding when they tear up the stage with sky high jetés or a warp speed manège. The volume is cranked up too and it’s easy to understand why everyone is elated. It’s a lengthy piece with many of the dancers doubling up across acts but the choreography is relentless in what must be an exhausting workout for all involved.

It’s true there is not much to decipher between the acts, the choreography is formulaic and safe at times, there’s no plot and not everything makes a lot of sense but this is high quality accessible ballet which can be enjoyed by the masses. Black Sabbath - The Ballet sold out theatres across the UK and there’s no reason why it shouldn’t overseas as well.

Birmingham Royal Ballet funded Vikki's travel