Hamilton star in Cork for transatlantic festival on life of Frederick Douglass 

Paul Oakley Stovall, actor and activist, star of the musical Hamilton, pictured at Nano Nagle Place, who are hosting the Museum of Literature Ireland's 'Douglass in Ireland' exhibition as part of #DouglassWeek, a weeklong creative commemoration of Frederick Douglass in Ireland from 8th - 14th February.   Picture: Clare Keogh

One of the stars of the smash-hit musical, Hamilton, hopes his involvement in a major transatlantic online festival this week celebrating the legacy of African American abolitionist Frederick Douglass will inspire a new generation about his vision of unity and tolerance.

Paul Oakley Stovall, who played George Washington in the first national tour of Hamilton, will feature in several events during Douglass Week, exploring the life, work, influence and legacy of the man described as the father of American civil rights, and one of Barack Obama’s political heroes, who visited Ireland just over 175 years ago.

“I am particularly thrilled with the opportunity that has been presented to me to meet people at the Cork Migrant Centre and Nano Nagle Place,” Stovall said.

“It was the unexpected icing on this wonderful cake. Frederick Douglass is not only significant for black people in American, he has continued to bring people together for nearly 200 years.

“It’s quite exciting for me to be forming a bond with the team at Nano Nagle Place and Cork Migrant Centre. In the end, it’s one of the more unexpected bonuses of this whole experience.” 

Hamilton, Lin-Manuel Miranda’s sung-and-rapped-through musical which tells the story of American founding father Alexander Hamilton, has been hailed for casting minority actors to play the roles of white people.

When Covid-19 shut the tour down, Stovall came to Ireland to research Douglass’s Irish tour and write a TV series on his life. 

He is working with Douglass’s great-great-grandson Ken Morris on the project.

He told UCC’s Plain Speaking Podcast that he hopes the production will look to tell more than what was recorded of Douglass’s visit and tap into what he believes Douglass was feeling as an African-American in 1845’s Ireland.

This week, Stovall is in Cork for the Douglass Week event where he will visit Nano Nagle Place and join in a series of events and workshops organised in partnership with the Cork Migrant Centre.

Junior, a spoken-word artist and rapper from Cork who mentors young people in Nano Nagle Place, is also trying to raise racial awareness in the Irish education system.

He said: “The focus on the Cork Migrant Centre is to educate and enable the youth we work with. An open mind is key for a successful and progressive society. We hope that our creative baby steps will eventually become giant strides that will inspire others.” 

Born into slavery in 1818, Frederick Douglass escaped bondage on a plantation in Maryland and fled to the north where he became a prominent anti-slavery activist.

American statesman, editor, and author Frederick Douglass, who famously visited Cork in 1845. Picture:  Stock Montage/Getty Images

In 1845, aged 27, he visited Ireland, spending most of his time in Cork across three weeks in October 1845.

He reflected on the devastating impact of the famine on Ireland, he met with Daniel O’Connell, who opposed slavery, and he struck up a friendship with the Fr Theobold Mathew, the leader of the temperance movement. He returned to America a changed man, describing his visit to Ireland as “transformative”.

He said he was struck by the “total absence of all manifestations of prejudice against me, on account of my colour. .. I find myself not treated as a colour, but as a man” and he went on to become a leading social reformer, orator, writer and statesman.

Douglass Week now aims to bring together students and researchers, historians, artists, musicians, poets, authors, singers, activists and community groups from Ireland and abroad to commemorate that visit and to explore issues like identity, migration and race in contemporary Ireland.

The event is the brainchild of UCC-based researchers, Dr Caroline Schroeter, Dr Tim Groenland and Sarah McCreedy. 

Mr Groenland said they wanted to take the positive story of Douglass beyond the university.

“It is an important story for young people to hear, especially those who are young, black and Irish. There is huge interest from various people in this becoming an annual event.”

With six strands, historical, literary, educational, music, creative and sports, the event will feature talks and “in conversation” events, as well as performances and initiatives and contributions from the UK and the US, with interactive workshops open to the public.

Stovall’s Hamilton castmate Nikhil Saboo will be involved in several events, a number of Irish soccer stars are due to take part in an event in association with the FAI and Cobh Ramblers exploring how football can help integration, and Stoval will be involved in an ‘inspiration series’ event featuring a panel of established artists in association with Nano Nagle Place on Wednesday. It will be hosted by Cork Migrant Centre youth mentors, Stevie G and Raphael Olympio, while the I Am Remarkable webinar series will highlight and promote the positive narratives of black people in Ireland.

Other contributors during the week will include Douglass descendants Nettie Washington Douglass and Kenneth B Morris Jr, as well as former President of Ireland Mary Robinson and author Colm Tobin.

All events are online and free of charge. More details at: www.douglassincork.com.