A day of music, dance and discussion at Southbank Centre featuring
Nu Civilisation Orchestra, Bonnie Greer, Peter Edwards, CHERISE, Valerie Ebuwa, Soweto Kinch and more to celebrate a movement that shook a city and awakened a nation.
The Harlem Renaissance was a seismic cultural revolution that shook a city and woke up a nation, the effects of which can still be felt across the world to this day. Tomorrow’s Warriors will celebrate this seminal creative explosion with an ambitious and innovative programme of music, dance, and discussion on Saturday 13th September 2025.
The day kicks off with A 100 Year Revolution: The Harlem Renaissance – a panel discussion at 2.00pm in the Purcell Room at Southbank Centre, tracing the 100-year cultural impact of the Harlem Renaissance and its relevance today. Panellists include Bonnie Greer OBE, Margaret Busby CBE, Soweto Kinch and Kevin Le Gendre. The discussion will explore the origins of the Harlem Renaissance and how the Black creative revolution in 1920s New York transformed the world. Topics will include the cultural influence on Black British identity, the impact of transatlantic artistic exchanges and the role of the creative arts in cultural solidarity.
Nu Civilisation Orchestra celebrates the Harlem Renaissance with with a specially curated programme of Duke Ellington’s music and the story of Florence Mills. Although Ellington and Mills never formally collaborated, their lives were entwined in the Black cultural revolution of the Harlem Renaissance in mid-1920s New York.
The evening begins with the premiere of The Blackbird of Harlem, a staged concert telling the incredible story of the trailblazing international artist and activist, Florence Mills through narration, music, dance, and visuals featuring Bonnie Greer OBE (playwright, author, broadcaster, critic), CHERISE (artist and composer) and dancer/choreographer Valerie Ebuwa (Clod Ensemble).
The second half of the concert features two of Duke Ellington’s seminal pieces that chart the influence of the influential New York district, A Tone Parallel to Harlem and Black, Brown and Beige.
Supported by Cockayne Grants for the Arts, a Donor Advised Fund, held at The Prism Charitable Trust.
