Before we can move forward, we must look back - together.
We invite you to join us for a specially curated tour of the Royal Exchange building – created to seek a better understanding and reflection on its historical connections to the transatlantic slave economy from research undertaken by the Emerging Scholars programme at the University of Manchester as part of the Race, Roots & Resistance Collective.
Led by a member of the Royal Exchange Theatre in a supportive space, this intimate experience is designed to open up conversation, share what we know, and acknowledge the complex legacy of commerce, power, and exploitation that shaped the Exchange building and the city of Manchester.
Together, we will:
• Explore the building’s origins as a business exchange at the heart of global trade
• Reflect on how this wealth was built and who paid the price
• Consider what it means to hold art and community within these walls today
This is not about having all the answers, it’s about making space for collective understanding. We are dedicated to uncovering more about the building’s past and are delighted to say that we are continuing our partnership with the Emerging Scholars programme, working with a new group of students to continue the in-depth research into the history of this building we now occupy.
The tour will conclude with an opportunity to attend LIBERATION – a powerful new production that celebrates resistance, resilience, and the ongoing fight for justice. It traces the private lives of activists who fought to liberate Africa in 1945 Manchester at the Fifth Pan-African Congress.
This is an invitation to witness, to question, and to feel – together.