We look to the past to shape our future. Who are you? Where are you going from here?

My name is Daniel B. Thompson, and I am a production manager and executive for the performing arts. I grew up in the homeland of the Shoshone people in what is now called Utah, and have since lived and worked all over the country making and enabling art. From here, I start a new adventure as the Technical Director for New World Symphony in Miami, Florida.

What most excites you about being a part of TAM’s 50th Anniversary Season?

As a production manager, I know very intimately how impossibly complicated and difficult producing multiple shows in rotating repertory in an historic building can be, and TAM has pulled off this feat for 50 years! TAM has been near and dear to my heart since my first season eight years ago, and my fifth season of collaboration with these fantastic artists coinciding with the 50th anniversary season tickles me to no end.

We’re all about making old things new and new things classic. Why are you drawn to Classic Theatre? How do you shake it up?

I’m always surprised anew when we produce a play that is 400 years old (or older), and the themes strike us as just as prescient and telling as they were centuries ago. I think producing classical theatre reminds how enduring these themes are and just how central they are to our humanity. One of the things I like about our approach to Shakespeare and classic texts, however, is the willingness to reconsider the staging, the text, and the interpretation of these plays to give them new life and added relevancy.

Who inspires you and why?

I’m constantly inspired by my colleagues, my friends, and my employees. I’m surrounded by a network of excellent people, and their hard work and success both keeps me humble and drives me to succeed.

You can have dinner with any three influential people. Who are your dream guests, why them, and what is the topic of conversation?

Maybe I’m just a stick in the mud, but I can’t really think of anyone who’d fit this bill. I’ve always shied from hero worship, and I’d be afraid that an up-close and personal encounter with so-called influential people would be disillusioning to me or that I’d be the pale and disappointing companion at the dinner table. I know I’m being very literalist, but I think I’d rather serve dinner to three people that I already know and love and bring a little joy into their lives for a moment instead.

What recent accomplishment are you most proud of?

I’m very proud of this season, honestly, and the people who have worked so hard to make it a success. Regardless of where I’ve been or where I’m going, I’ll always brag about my time with a gem of a theater company tucked away in Central Maine.

What’s your super power?

Either my ability to know how you’re feeling or to remain calm under pressure – (it’s part of my job after all.)