Black Cultural Archives (BCA) and TGRG welcomes the multi-award-winning Barry Jenkins to its virtual stage to discuss his latest project, Underground Railroad. The ‘Moonlight’ director will be part of a live event hosted by award-winning journalist, Nadine Drummond, on Monday 17 May 2021 at 7pm.

The Underground Railroad chronicles Cora Randall’s (newcomer Thuso Mbedu) desperate bid for freedom in the antebellum South. After escaping a Georgia plantation for the rumoured Underground Railroad, Cora discovers no mere metaphor, but an actual railroad full of engineers and conductors, and a secret network of tracks and tunnels beneath the Southern soil.

Over the course of her journey, Cora is pursued by Ridgeway (Joel Edgerton), a bounty hunter who is fixated on bringing her back to the plantation she escaped; especially since her mother Mabel is the only one he has never caught.

As she travels from state to state, Cora contends with the legacy of the mother that left her behind and her own struggles to realise a life she never thought was possible.

TGRG MD, Juanita Rosenior said “So proud to be working with AMPR to bring Barry to the Black Cultural Archives. I know audiences here will be so excited to hear from him directly about his latest work and career”

As the home of Black history, BCA is the only national heritage centre dedicated to collecting, preserving and celebrating the histories of African and Caribbean people in Britain. Though Underground Railroad is based on an American narrative, it tells a universal story familiar to those across the diaspora. The show’s cast is as far reaching as its story with Thuso Mbedu – a South African – as well as several British actors including Sheila Atim, Aaron Pierre and Peter de Jersey.

Tickets are available now at blackculturalarchives.org/events and are Free/Pay What You Want. All donations will go towards the archives’ work.

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  • Black Cultural Archives is the home of Black British History, conceived in 1981 as a monument to hold space for the histories of people from across the African diaspora in British culture and history.

    We use our mission to collect, preserve and celebrate the histories of people of African and Caribbean descent in the UK and to inspire and give strength to individuals, communities and society.

    Our HQ is 1 Windrush Square in Brixton, London. At our HQ we run a series of gallery exhibitions, educational programmes and public engagement events. We provide free access to our unique set of archives, museum objects and reference library.