Tazewell Thompson

“Tazewell Thompson’s imaginative production; Mr. Thompson stresses the folkloric nature of the piece, a Chinese legend reinterpreted to make a modern political statement. Spread over the Arena’s wide stage, the tale unfolds with a storybook simplicity; Mr. Thompson suggests on one level, spectacle and artful panoply.”

“Mr. Thompson has done vivid work with the crowd scenes... under Mr. Thompson’s direction each member has an individual role to play.”

“Tazewell Thompson’s direction is more recent, and he brings a fresh, urgent spirit of theatricality to the piece. The stage is constantly alive with the details of everyday life, but nothing looks fussy or threatens to interfere with the personalities who dominate the action. Each character, in fact, develops in fascinating ways that are likely to surprise even those who know the opera well.”

“Of the summer’s four operas, by far the most compelling is Poulenc’s Dialogues of the Carmelites,... of all the versions of this opera, Tazewell Thompson’s cinematic production stands among the best of them.”

“Tazewell Thompson, who has become a directing regular at Theaterworks in the last year and a half, is in excellent form here, evincing four lovely performances.”

“Lost in the Stars,” presented in a humane and affecting production directed by Tazewell Thompson, was cast with great sensitivity to the racial identities of the various characters.”

“The venerable Molly Smith, the Arena Stage Director, lauded playwright/director Tazewell Thompson for his “glorious gift with language which helps us to see the humanity of these remarkable people.” Thompson, who has directed close to two dozen plays at Arena, such as M. Butterfly, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom and Fences, told me he wrote this play for his mother and grandmother. Like so many black women, he did not want Keckley buried in the footnotes of history. He wanted her to be remembered.”

“There is much more to admire in the production, which plays out smoothly on Brandon McNeel’s masterful set and maintains a vibrant pulse under the finely detailed direction of Tazewell Thompson.”

“Washington National Opera has assembled a cast of 38 artists so talented—and so brilliantly staged and directed—that it is hard to single out individual performances. Yet there are a dozen who stand out, beginning with Tazewell Thompson, the director who originally put this production together at South Africa’s Cape Town Opera.”

“Written by the gone but much remembered Lorraine Hansberry, this forward-looking and timeless play was truthfully directed by Tazewell Thompson in a way that mined many nuances of the struggle to be effectively human. Such is the truthfulness of the show, and it will leave audiences with a sense of wonder; Arena Stage’s A Raisin in the Sun is a lovely stage symphony of treasured performances.”

“The weather vane of Arena Stage’s aggressively entertaining “A Raisin in the Sun” is Lizan Mitchell, the force-of-nature actress playing the 1959 play’s righteous, loving grandmother, Lena Younger. When director Tazewell Thompson wants this show to be funny, the impish Mitchell nails a punchline. When he wants it to be grand, Mitchell rises majestically and gives the performance the force and depth of Greek tragedy.

Quibble with its florid excesses if you like, but there’s no mistaking that this “Raisin” — bizarrely, the first in the company’s nearly 70-year-history — is a crowd-pleaser. “A Raisin in the Sun” is such a major cornerstone of 20th-century American culture that it seems like an obvious and maybe even dull choice, a warhorse for regular theatergoers to avoid while seeking out fresher stimulation. Thompson is determined that it won’t be a dull experience.”

“I didn’t know much about directing, but I relied on the work I had seen Tazewell Thompson produce, a visiting professor who directed performances at Dartmouth during the fall of 2013 and 2016 (in which I was an assistant stage manager and an actor, respectively). He has been a mentor and friend to me throughout my Dartmouth career, and I am certain that, had I not been exposed to his work, I would never have gained the skills necessary to begin directing actors.”

“The unmistakable yearning Kopas displays whenever Marks and Esther must part company is so affecting, in part, because of Director Thompson’s facility with the power of timing. In not only the lingering glances and quiet resignation of Marks and Esther, but throughout the play, Thompson gives the story room to take hold and creates moments of great impact. If Vincent Lancisi was betting that lightning would strike twice if he brought together Tazewell Thompson and members of the outstanding cast of Ruined to put on another Lynn Nottage play at Everyman, he hit the jackpot. Intimate Apparel is, by turns, beautiful and tragic, hopeful and heartbreaking. With exceptional acting and beautifully coordinated design, Intimate Apparel is 100% worth putting on your Autumn To Do list.”