Musical 'Mexodus' loops in the journey of enslaved freedom seekers below the border

History textbooks often see the communicative of the Underground Railroad, an organized web of concealed routes, places and radical that guided enslaved populations from the South to abolitionist Northern states.

However, little is known astir the underground railroad that ran southbound to Mexico. But 1 live-looped philharmonic is unearthing that hidden history, 1 bushed astatine a time.

Co-created and performed by Brian Quijada and Nygel D. Robinson, “Mexodus” tells the fictional communicative of Henry, who evades his seizure by fleeing Texas crossed the Rio Grande. After a adjacent fatality, helium is saved by Carlos, a husbandman and erstwhile combat medic battling his ain trauma from the Mexican-American War. Together they signifier solidarity, contempt social, radical and governmental strains plaguing some sides of the border.

Following its off-Broadway tally astatine the Daryl Roth Theatre successful New York City, the hip-hop and bolero-infused philharmonic directed by David Mendizábal volition unfastened astatine the Pasadena Playhouse signifier July 8 and tally until Aug. 2. But for past buffs and philharmonic enthusiasts alike, a sonically richer mentation filled with dependable effects of the philharmonic airs exclusively connected Audible today, April 16.

The thought for “Mexodus” archetypal came to Brian Quijada — playwright, histrion and composer down “Where Did We Sit connected the Bus?,” “Kid Prince and Pablo” and “Somewhere Over the Border” — erstwhile speechmaking a 2018 nonfiction connected History.com astir the estimated 5,000 to 10,000 enslaved individuals that escaped the American South for state successful Mexico, though immoderate researchers estimation that fig to beryllium higher.

“My parents crossed the borderline undocumented successful the precocious 1970s, truthful I deliberation I’ve ever been fascinated with penning migration stories,” Quijada said. “The crushed that this communicative attracted maine was due to the fact that it’s similar a reverse borderline story, but I besides knew that it wasn’t my communicative to archer truthful I sat connected it for a agelong time.”

Quijada bookmarked the nonfiction until helium met Robinson — a performer astatine Berkeley Rep, Baltimore Center Stage, Shakespeare Theater Company, Mosaic Theater and writer and composer of “Santa Claus Is Comin’: A Motown Christmas Revue” and “R&J: Fire connected the Bayou” — astatine an actor-musician league weeks earlier the commencement of the COVID-19 pandemic. They were the lone actors-musicians of colour successful the room, listening successful connected conversations astir however 1 should audition for musicals similar “Once,” “Million Dollar Quartet,” which typically halfway achromatic storylines.

“We benignant of looked astatine each different and we’re like, ‘we don’t truly beryllium here,’” said Quijada, who invited Robinson to instrumentality portion successful “Mexodus” during the pandemic shutdown. The archetypal iteration of the task was arsenic a mixtape.

The philharmonic borderline of “Mexodus” hinges connected unrecorded looping, a signaling and playback method wherever a dependable is repeated and past layered (think Justin Bieber’s solo show of “Yukon” astatine the 2026 Grammy Awards). Physically, some Quijada and Robinson’s characters person to prime up a guitar, grounds it, past play the drum acceptable and tally to the bass. “ It’s beauteous labor-intensive,” Quijada said.

“I deliberation Brian and I are artists successful this way, similar assorted radical of color, wherever it’s like, nary 1 other is gonna bash it for me, truthful I tin bash it each by myself,” Robinson said.

There’s besides a much dramaturgical, meta crushed for the loop, which follows a 4 chord operation passim the piece, acceptable successful some 1851 and contiguous day.

“The looping shows you that there’s not overmuch quality betwixt 1851 and 2026,” Robinson said. “We conscionable support uncovering ourselves successful a loop and similar possibly a dependable is successful that wasn’t determination before. Maybe different dependable is added, but it’s inactive the aforesaid 4 chord operation that has been happening successful this state for each existence.”

In 2010, the U.S. National Park Service outlined a imaginable runaway way stretching connected the Camino Real de la Tejas betwixt Natchitoches, La., to Monclova, Mexico. Still, it is unclear however organized the underground railroad heading to Mexico genuinely was, the Associated Press reported successful 2020, with archives destroyed successful a occurrence and sites on the way abandoned.

In 2024 the Jackson Ranch Church and Martin Jackson Cemetery successful San Juan, Texas — which are portion of a ranch owned by interracial mates Nathaniel Jackson and Matilda Hicks — were recognized by the U.S. National Park Service for serving arsenic a gateway to state successful Mexico.

Other Texas couples alongside the border— including interracial abolitionist mates Ferdinand Webber and Silvia Hector — aided enslaved radical successful their pursuits to scope Mexico, which had abolished slavery successful 1829, portion Texas was inactive portion of the country.

Fears surrounding the Mexican government’s attempts to abolish slavery led to the enactment of the Republic of Texas successful 1836 and its eventual annexation to the United States by 1845; records besides amusement that American enslaved owners would caput down to Mexico to kidnap formerly enslaved individuals, according to USC historiographer Alice Baumgartner, who wrote astir it successful her 2020 publication “South to Freedom: Runaway Slaves to Mexico and the Road to the Civil War.”

A database by the Texas Runaway Slave Project, which recovered listings for 2,500 runaways crossed assorted Texas newspapers from the 1840s done the 1860s, besides documents the frequented travel to Mexico.

Slavery successful the U.S. wouldn’t beryllium officially abolished until 1865 with the ratification of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution.

“I was besides truly intimidated by the magnitude of probe that I would person to bash to constitute this portion due to the fact that astatine the clip backmost [between 2017 and 2020], [researchers] were conscionable opening to uncover a batch of this,” Quijada said.

(Thomas Mundell)

Themes of racism — including anti-Blackness successful the Latino assemblage — oppression and absorption are woven passim “Mexodus,” which since its debut successful 2023 astatine the Baltimore Center Stage/Mosaic Theater Company successful Washington, D.C., has been making viewers alert of the little-known history.

Robinson recalled however 1 Black pistillate came up to him aft the amusement to fto him cognize she believed successful Trump’s borderline wall.

“I got nervous, but she was like, ‘after seeing this, I’m realizing that there’s thing trying to person maine of that.’ And I’m like, yes!” said Robinson. “I’m like, this is good. This is good. We started you somewhere. Wow.”

The brace anticipation that amid each the acheronian quality circulating astir the satellite — and the traumatic, humanities themes interlaced successful “Mexodus” — the beingness of this portion of creation tin beryllium a glimmer of anticipation and joyousness for the aboriginal of some Black and brownish communities.

“ I request you each to spot the truth, but we’re gonna effort and creation anyway,” Robinson said.