TIME: Paul Tazewell’s ‘Wicked’ Costumes Went Viral. That Was Just His Latest Milestone

Tracy Nguyen—The New York Times/Redux

Over the course of his nearly 35-year career, costume designer Paul Tazewell has helped change the theater landscape for the better. While he’s recently been in the news for his conversation-sparking work on Jon M. Chu’s Wicked films, his legacy in costuming is long.

In 1996, Tazewell made his Broadway debut with Bring in 'da Noise, Bring in 'da Funk. The groundbreaking musical revue, conceived by director George C. Wolfe and choreographer and dancer Savion Glover, told the story of Black America, from the Middle Passage to the rise of hip-hop, through innovative tap dancing. 

The show, a cultural phenomenon which ran from 1996 to 1999, posed an interesting challenge for Tazewell: to create costumes that were not only historically accurate, but also functional for Glover and the other performers. “This wasn’t the tap that we’d seen in a production of 42nd Street,” says Tazewell, 61. “It was just about how the percussive sound of tap could be used to create poetic representations of Black Americans.” 

Read the full story here: https://time.com/collections/closers-2026/7353428/paul-tazewell/