Blackbox
Blackbox is a show at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2026, performing at Underbelly, Cowgate. It has 25 performances listed, running from Wed 5 Aug, 12:40 to Sun 30 Aug, 12:40. The run has finished — every listed performance has taken place.
About this show
A play disguised as a magic show where history and illusion intertwine. Enslaved in America, Henry 'Box' Brown conjures his life and reenacts his daring 1849 escape when he shipped himself to freedom inside a wooden crate. Each illusion mirrors a chapter of his journey: love, loss, confinement, faith and defiance. Gospel-infused soundscapes and stagecraft transform the theatre into a site of both sanctuary and reckoning. As boxes appear, vanish and break apart, Henry's story becomes more than spectacle – it becomes testimony, inviting audiences to witness liberation not as legend but as lived and embodied resistance.
Details
- Venue: Underbelly, Cowgate
- Space: Belly Button
- Genre: THEATRE, New writing, Artist(s) of Colour
- Country: UNITED STATES
- Running time: 60 minutes
- Room size: about 123 seats (Belly Button) — the Fringe box office sells a share of the room, not all of it
- Performances listed: 25, of which 0 still to come and on sale
Accessibility
- Venue notes: Accessible entry: There are 16 steps into this venue from the cowgate entrance. Stairs: 11- 20 Number of stairs is provided as guidance and is not in addition to any wheelchair access type (lift/ramp etc) stated above.
What the reviewers said
We have captured 14 published reviews and 45 audience reviews for this show from the Edinburgh Festival Fringe’s own listing. The excerpts below are the reviewers’ words, not ours — follow each link for the full review.
Blackbox, written by the only tenured hip-hop professor in America, Rickerby Hinds, follows the true story of an enslaved US man, Henry ‘Box’ Brown.
— A Young(ish) Perspective (4 out of 5 stars)
It’s an outstanding performance by both actors and truly drives home the horrors of slavery and man’s inhumanity to man
— The Real Chrisparkle (4 out of 5 stars)
With compelling song, rap and empathy between the performers – and some neat magic illuminating the narrative – this is fine innovative theatre.
— Three Weeks (4 out of 5 stars)
Performance dates and ticket availability
- Wed 5 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £9.00
- Thu 6 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £9.00
- Fri 7 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £9.00
- Sat 8 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £14.50
- Sun 9 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £14.50
- Mon 10 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £14.50
- Tue 11 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £14.50
- Wed 12 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £13.50
- Thu 13 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £13.50
- Fri 14 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £14.50
- Sat 15 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £14.50
- Sun 16 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £14.50
- Tue 18 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £13.50
- Wed 19 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £13.50
- Thu 20 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £13.50
- Fri 21 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £14.50
- Sat 22 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £14.50
- Sun 23 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £14.50
- Mon 24 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £13.50
- Tue 25 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £13.50
- Wed 26 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £13.50
- Thu 27 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £13.50
- Fri 28 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £14.50
- Sat 29 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £14.50
- Sun 30 Aug, 12:40 — Already performed — £14.50