Tony Iommi Reflects on Black Sabbath’s Collaboration with Birmingham Royal Ballet

Tony Iommi, the legendary guitarist of Black Sabbath, has expressed his surprise and excitement over the collaboration with the Birmingham Royal Ballet, which has brought together the worlds of heavy metal and ballet. Initially skeptical, Iommi now considers the ballet’s return to the stage ‘everything’ and is moved by the success of the 2023 premiere season, which sold out and attracted many heavy metal fans to ballet for the first time. The show will tour the UK, Europe, and the US starting on 18 September. Iommi also lamented that his bandmate Ozzy Osbourne, who had wanted to see the ballet, passed away before he could witness it. Meanwhile, Birmingham Royal Ballet’s artistic director Carlos Acosta, who grew up in Cuba where heavy metal was prohibited, now embraces the genre and has worked with the company to create a bold, forward-thinking production that highlights the music of Black Sabbath. The ballet’s homecoming performance will be held at Birmingham Hippodrome from 18 to 27 September.