May 26, 2011

Joseph plans reading to benefit Joplin, Mo.

by Andrea Hahn

CARBONDALE, Ill. -- The toll in terms of lives lost and damage done continues to escalate for Joplin, Mo., a town devastated by a recent tornado. Allison Joseph, poet and the director of the creative writing master of fine arts program at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, plans a benefit reading for the storm-ravaged city.

Joplin is the birthplace of American writer Langston Hughes (1902-1967), noted poet, novelist, playwright and columnist.

The benefit event, “Langston Out Loud: A Benefit for Joplin,” features readings from Langston’s poetry and door prizes for some of those in attendance. Admission is free, though donations are, of course, encouraged. The reading is from 4 to 6 p.m. on June 14 in the Harry T. Moore Auditorium in Faner Hall (Room 1326).

Some of Hughes’ most famous poems include “The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain,” “Montage of a Dream Deferred,” “I, Too, Sing America,” and “Po’Boy Blues.” In spite of his Midwestern roots, Hughes was part of the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s. In addition to his poetry, he also wrote plays and prose.