Behind the Beautiful Forevers Youth Conference

Mulberry School for Girls has run an annual Youth Conference since 2002, bringing together hundreds of students from around Britain to explore issues of common concern. This year, we are delighted to be holding the conference in partnership with National Theatre Learning and Langley Park Sixth Form. The conference will bring together schools from across the UK to explore the play Behind the Beautiful Forevers, a new play by David Hare based on the book by Katherine Boo, who spent three years in Annawadi, a makeshift slum surrounding Mumbai airport, recording the lives of its residents. Curated and hosted by students from both schools, the conference will explore the themes of the play, global inequality, social justice, aspiration and education. Speakers will include Rufus Norris, Director Designate of the National Theatre, Akala, hip hop artist and social entrepreneur, Rahima Begum, Founder of Restless Beings, Chrisann Jarret, Campaigner and Founder of Let us Learn and Professor Heidi Mirza, Professor of Race, Faith & Culture at Goldsmiths, University of London, as well as representatives of Focus E15 and Magic Bus. The conference will also feature a range of practical workshops which empower young people with leadership skills to create positive change in their communities.