When the lights come up and the curtain rises on a Broadway production, it is the culmination of months of hard work and planning.
For many people in the theater business, opening night of a show is the end, not the beginning, of the creative process.
One such person is Tony Award-nominated costume designer Paul Tazewell, who, for the past 14 years, has designed for theater, dance and opera productions in the United States and internationally.
His costume design credits include Broadway productions “Bring in 'da Noise, Bring in 'da Funk,” “On the Town,” “Def Poetry Jam,” the “Guys and Dolls” revival, “Memphis” and “The Color Purple.”
A 1986 graduate of the UNC School of the Arts, Tazewell lives in New York City but has family in Asheboro and enjoys supporting the local arts scene.
Through July 28, the Randolph Arts Guild is hosting a Tazewell exhibition, featuring a collection of sketches, designs and costumes from select productions. This is the second time the guild has featured an exhibition of the artist’s work.
“It’s a rare opportunity for the public to be able to see what goes on behind the scenes, the huge volume of work behind a show,” Tazewell explains.
Tazewell’s designs start with sketches, which is how he communicates his vision to the costume builders, stitchers, milliners and textile experts who bring their creativity to get a reality as close to the concept as possible.
“I have been drawing since I was a kid, so using it as a means of communication comes easy to me,” Tazewell says.
Designing costumes is different than designing clothes because one must take into account how it “reads” on stage. How does the fabric move with or against the actor’s movements? Where will this production be performed — an intimate theater or a huge opera house? How is the work in scale with the style of the show?
“You have to filter through life to the stage. For instance, the costumes for 'Swan Lake’ were very present. The scale of decoration, when you see them up close, was big,” he says. “But the production was in a huge opera house, and the decoration has to be that large to read that far to the audience.”
The exhibit illustrates this process by showcasing numerous sketches alongside actual costumes, so the public can see Tazewell’s illustrations come to life. Multiple productions will be presented, with “The Color Purple” being a main feature.
Despite his veteran status in the theater world, the work and the process still appeals to the designer. He says he especially enjoys seeing how his vision benefits from the collaborative efforts of those executing the designs.
“At every point of the process, there is the potential for excitement,” he says.
Contact Stephanie Burt at charlotteghost@gmail.com
