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Trumpeter Noah Simpson opening “The Weary Blues:  Celebrating Langston Hughes and the Harlem Renaissance.”

February 7, 2026

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Dear Readers:

…..This is a long overdue report…

…..On February 7 of this year, I produced “The Weary Blues:  Celebrating Langston Hughes and the Harlem Renaissance,” a multi-media off-Broadway-style stage performance that combined literary history with the artistic excellence of Portland’s best jazz musicians.

…..The show – directed by Rhonda R. Dorsett, who has an extensive background in theatrical design, with creative credits on and off Broadway and in corporate theatre – took the stage during Black History Month and recognized the 100^th anniversary of the publication of Hughes’ first collection of poetry, The Weary Blues.

…..Performed at NE Portland’s Alberta Abbey, I’m very proud to report that the show was a significant artistic and community success, witnessed by a standing-room only crowd of 420 people – apparently the largest crowd for a performance in the venue’s long history.  (The event sold out a week in advance of the show, and many folks were turned away).  The success of this show meant that we were able to bestow a significant amount of its proceeds to our non-profit partner The Oregon Music Hall of Fame – enough to contribute mightily toward a scholarship for a young and aspiring Portland musician.

…..“The Weary Blues” was headlined by Portland performance poet Emmett Wheatfall, a contributing poet to Jerry Jazz Musician, and winner of the prestigious 2024 Oregon Poetry Association Patricia Ruth Banta Award.  A gifted and charismatic artist, during the two act show Emmett artfully entertained and connected with the audience while performing 20 poems from Hughes’ historic collection, including “The Negro Speaks of Rivers,” “The Weary Blues,” “I, Too, Sing America,” and “The Dream Keeper.”  A jazz quartet made up of musicians led by the drummer Christopher Brown, and including pianist Darrell Grant, trumpeter Noah Simpson, and bassist Garrett Baxter accompanied Emmett, playing music in the style of Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Fats Waller and Eubie Blake – all musical stalwarts of the Harlem Renaissance.

…..Historic photography and art from the era was projected on the screen behind the performers, providing the audience an opportunity to understand the complexity of the era and the profound and enduring impact Hughes and the Harlem Renaissance has had on American culture.

…..I have always felt that understanding the complexity of Black history helps us all better understand American history, and ultimately ourselves.  It is a philosophy that has driven Jerry Jazz Musician since 1999.   I have also always believed that if this history is presented via a theatrical performance that combines music, literature and film, an audience will be moved by the experience.    The success of “The Weary Blues” is evidence of that.  (More than one attendee described the event as a “healing experience”).

…..On a personal level, producing this show and seeing the community respond to it was deeply emotional, and a highlight of my life.

…..There is a future for “The Weary Blues” – most immediately again in Portland on February 19, 2027 (in a larger venue to be announced soon) – and potentially in other cities across the country.  I am in the process of determining the feasibility of this, and seeking investors who would like to be a part of this exciting production.  Please reach out to me at [email protected] if you are interested in receiving information about my plans.

…..I hope to have a short film of the event to share with you in the near future.  Until then, I’ve published some photos taken during the show by my dear friend Bob Hecht.  An event program follows the photos.

Onward!

Joe Maita

Editor/Publisher

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Emmett Wheatfall

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Darrell Grant

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Noah Simpson

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Christopher Brown

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Garrett Baxter

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Emmett Wheatfall

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Darrell Grant.

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Garrett Baxter, Christopher Brown, Noah Simpson

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Darrell Grant and Emmett Wheatfall

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Rhonda R. Dorsett and Joe Maita

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Joe Maita, Emmett Wheatfall, Rhonda R. Dorsett, Karen Wheatfall

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Emmett Wheatfall, Karen Wheatfall, Christopher Brown, Maude Hines (Black Studies Chair at Portland State University), Rhonda R. Dorsett, Joe Maita

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Program for the show

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Jerry Jazz Musician…human produced since 1999

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