![]() ![]() ![]() The theater, much like the rest of Hughes’ oeuvre, illuminated the voices of Black America culturally, politically, and religiously. These and other gospel plays were, according to Sanders, Hughes’s “most important dramatic works” (4). He continued to collaborate with composer Margaret Bonds on works such as The Ballad of the Brown King, documented the civil rights movement in Jericho-Jim Crow, and debuted one of his signature contributions to the theater: the gospel play, documented here in ephemera for Tambourines to Glory and The Prodigal Son. In the 1960s, the last decade of Hughes’ life, some of his earlier theatrical works, such as Street Scene, continued to be performed, but he also created a number of new works for stage. ![]() From cantatas to operas to ballads to gospel plays, Hughes touched them all. Throughout the Langston Hughes ephemera collection, Hughes’ range of theatrical writing is demonstrated through playbills, advertising fliers, and reviews. Moreover, Hughes not only enjoyed the theatre as a spectator but as a writer. Throughout his autobiography, The Big Sea, Hughes mentions outings to the theatre as a favorite pastime. Hughes’ love for the theatre, fostered by his mother, began in childhood and never wavered. When it came to theatrical or lyrical work, Hughes collaborated with many composers who were, according to scholar Leslie Catherine Sanders, “attracted to his simple, yet elegant lyricism” (594). He left a lasting impact within many areas of the arts-whether it be poetry, lyrics, prose, or librettos. ![]()
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