African-American writer Langston Hughes will be the focus of a University of Utah musical event Saturday, Feb. 19, to mark Black History Month.
Headlining "Langston Hughes: An Evening of American Art Song and Poetry" is U. Fine Arts Dean Raymond Tymas-Jones, a tenor who will be joined by actor Stephen Henderson, of SUNY Buffalo; dancer Jo Blake, of the Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company; and pianist Richard Thompson.
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A music professor at San Diego State University, Thompson composed "Dream Variations," music accompaniment for a cycle of Hughes poems that include "The Negro Speaks of Rivers," "Monotony" and "Dream Variations." Associate Fine Arts Dean Brent Schneider choreographed the dance elements with Blake.
Hughes, 1902-67, was a leading figure in the Harlem Renaissance, a period of awakening for black culture in the 1920s. His work included plays, journalism, novels and essays, but the Feb. 19 production draws mostly from his poetry, acclaimed for giving voice to the black experience.
The event is part of the U.’s Sundays@7 series of free performances highlighting music faculty, held at 7 p.m. in Libby Gardner Concert Hall. Admission is free.
– Brian Maffly
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