2024 marks the 10-year anniversary of the cancellation of Exhibit B at the Barbican Vaults.

A live installation by the white South African artist Brett Bailey, Exhibit B was described by its creator as a critique of the “human zoos” that displayed Africans as objects of scientific curiosity during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It received five-star reviews when it opened at the Playfair Library in Edinburgh but also drew criticism for reproducing the racist objectification of those original ethnographic displays. The installation, which featured Black actors chained and in cages, moved to the Barbican in London, where it sparked a national campaign, including a 23,000-strong petition, marches, articles, letters, and critical analysis. On opening night, 200 protesters linked arms and blockaded the entrance to the theatre, prompting the Barbican to cancel all further performances.

In this episode, playwright Kwame Kwei-Armah and Museum of Colour Director Samenua travel back to 2014 to talk to the people involved in the play and its cancellation, asking: Does art have the right to offend? Who can tell the story of colonisation? And do venues have an obligation to stand by their artists, no matter what?

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