Black Midi Perform One-Act Play 'The Beggar And The King'
A short play by Winthrop Parkhurst.
Black Midi have joined NTS Radio performing a short one-act play called The Beggar And The King, a piece by Winthrop Parkhurst originally published at the start of the 20th century. The performance was part of NTS Radio’s Remote Utopias broadcast, a 24-hour livestream “takeover” that brought together a flurry of artists across the world to share their music and other works. This follows the 11-minute track “Sweater” that the band dropped back in February, the final cut off their LP Schlagenheim.
The Beggar And The King tells the allegorical tale of a beggar who pleads for food from a proud king. The story is packed full of humorous moments and uses irony as the main device to reveal the importance of the working class — when the king denies the beggar of his bread, he is reminded that the poor are the foundation of his royal position and that their obedience should not be mistaken for weakness. Black Midi’s segment measures at around 17 and a half minutes, lively voiced by the experimental math rockers. In line with the central theme of the play, the livestream raised money for a charity that offers food to those in need: The Global Foodbanking Network.
Scroll above to listen to Black Midi perform The Beggar And The King from NTS Radio’s Remote Utopias livestream. Head over to The Global Foodbanking Network’s dedicated website to donate now.
In case you missed it, check out one of Black Midi’s untitled singles from Schlagenheim.
