Zora, Langston & U - Then & Now and Again

“How important it is to have tours like this and more ways to keep alive the stories of those who lived, worked, even created great masterpieces just down the street from that sleek condo.”

“I feel like I am part of a larger story.”

The reviews are in!

For a few African American artists in the early part of the 20th century, Washington, DC served as a mid-point between cultural awakenings and artistic fulfillment. Zora Neale Hurston and Langston Hughes</a></strong> would not meet in Washington, DC to seal their legendary literary friendship (that eventually became a legendary split). They would arrive at different times for different reasons, and with different perspectives. Zora was migrating north from the South to complete her education. Langston had just returned to New York after traveling abroad. His mother needed him in D.C. Meanwhile, Edward Kennedy Ellington was becoming a local celebrity using his musician's name, "Duke" and finding play dates in both black and white social settings. In the segregated capital city, Duke, a native Washingtonian, found his way, through music, into two worlds.

These artistic icons provide a thematic back drop for my second walking tour -- ZORA, LANGSTON -- highlighting cultural life along the U Street corridor, Howard University, and Shaw after World War I and into the Prohibition era -- a time of great change in the capital city then as is now.

DATE: Saturday, November 15 at 9:30 AM (Tour lasts 3.5 hours with stops)

MEET UP LOCATION: Busboys and Poets, 2021 14th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20009

TICKET PRICE (includes breakfast and tastings): $37.50/person

Ticket price includes a donation to support the programs of the Humanities Council of Washington, DC and their mission to celebrate the vibrant tapestry of culture in the Nation’s Capital through humanities programming and grants. Visit wdchumanities.org.

IMAGE: Portraits of Zora Neale Hurston and Langston Hughes by Winold Reiss were commissioned by Survey Graphic magazine for a special issue, "The New Negro," published in 1925 to capture the spirit of the Harlem Renaissance .