藍斯頓休斯是個用文字來表達自己的藝術家，但他也受到其他型態的藝術影響，所以他的作品跨越到其他的媒體。休斯被視為文藝復興人，即興趣廣泛多方才藝的人。1920年代的哈萊姆文藝復興運動是住在紐約市的非裔美國人用來頌揚己身文化的活動，而爵士及藍調則是這項運動中不可或缺的要素 。休斯表示爵士及藍調傳達涵蓋廣泛的黑人經歷，起自悲傷、難過，終於希望、決心。1958年，休斯錄製他的詩作時，即邀請知名的享利「紅」艾倫樂團 (Henry "Red" Allen Band)擔任伴奏的工作 。爵士的節奏也影響了他1951年的作品「緩夢蒙太奇」(Montage of a Dream Deferred)，這是一則書本長度的詩集，共分五 段，各別使用音樂、詩歌及歷史來描述非裔美國人的城市經歷。
Langston Hughes was an artist who used words to express himself, but other forms of art influenced him, and his work crossed over into other mediums. Hughes was considered a Renaissance man, someone who has wide interests and is talented in many areas. Jazz and blues were key elements of the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s, a time when African Americans in a section of New York City started a movement to celebrate their culture. Hughes said that jazz and blues expressed the wide range of black America's experience, from grief and sadness to hope and determination. The famous Henry "Red" Allen Band accompanied Hughes in a 1958 poetry recording. The rhythms of jazz also influenced his 1951 Montage of a Dream Deferred. This was a book-length poem in five sections depicting the African American urban experience using music, poetry, and history.
詩詞與音樂可以結合在一起(就像您聆聽的現代歌曲)。但藍斯頓休斯將其創作羽翼更向外伸展。他熱愛舞台劇及戲劇並在紐約及洛杉磯成立劇場公司。1930年時，休斯與赫斯頓 (Zora Neale Hurston) 一起編寫了他的第一本劇本「Mule Bone」，從此他就不停的為舞台劇編寫劇本 。為了讓劇本內容貼近現實生活，休斯融合了他的詩詞與人們的日常對話。1957年，他寫了一本名為「Simply Heavenly」的劇本，該劇於百老匯(位於紐約市)及倫敦上演。Music and poetry worked together -- just like they do today in songs you listen to. But Langston Hughes spread his creative wings even further. He loved drama and plays, and founded theater companies in both New York and Los Angeles. Hughes wrote his first play, Mule Bone, with Zora Neale Hurston in 1930 and kept writing for the stage the rest of his life. In order to make his plays sound realistic, Hughes mixed the lyrical nature of his poetry with the sounds of people in conversation. In 1957 he wrote a play called Simply Heavenly, which played on Broadway (in New York City) and in London.
藍斯頓休斯的作品影響了許許多多的人，年輕作家及藝術家都以他為師。非裔美國人在其查找了他們曾經有過的經歷及文化的聲音(一個前所未有的聲音)。許多來自於不同種族的藝術家都受到了他的啟發，開始書寫、繪製、演出及吟唱。如圖中的素描一般，有些人甚至將他們的作品獻給休斯。 藝術如何影響您的生活？您曾讀過、看過或聽過任何讓您回想起自身生活方式或最近發生事件的作品嗎？Langston Hughes influenced many other people with his art -- young writers and artists looked up to him. African Americans found in him a voice for their own experiences and culture -- a voice that hadn't been widely heard until then. He inspired many other artists of all races to write, draw, play, and sing. Some even dedicated their work to Hughes, as you can see in the drawing here.How does art touch your life? Have you ever read, watched, or listened to something that reminded you of the way you live or of something that has happened to you?
