Denver Center for the Performing Arts President and CEO Janice Sinden and DCPA Theatre Company Producing Artistic Director Kent Thompson jointly announced his resignation to Trustees, staff and subscribers earlier today. Kent will remain head of the Theatre Company through March 3, 2017 and will direct the upcoming production of The Christians (Jan, 27  through Feb. 26).

“Kent has been an exceptional artistic leader of the Theatre Company for the past 12 years,” said Sinden. “His accomplishments as Producing Artistic Director include the creation of the nationally acclaimed Colorado New Play Summit, the establishment of the Women’s Voices Fund to support the work of women in theatre, the development of innovative and immersive programming through Off-Center, and a robust commissioning program. As a director, Kent has led more than 20 productions at the Theatre Company, most notably Kent Haruf’s Plainsong trilogy, Sweeney Todd, and numerous world premieres and Shakespearean productions during his tenure. We will miss his commitment to artistic excellence and wish him the very best in his future endeavors.”

Kent Thompson’s legacy: Giving sound to unheard voices

“With the support of so many at the DCPA and in the Denver community,” said Thompson, “serving as Producing Artistic Director for the last 12 season has been a fulfilling and rewarding period of growth and achievement. The Theatre Company’s efforts have brought national acclaim and foundation support to the DCPA, Denver and Colorado. We also have worked to diversify our programming, company and staff to create a theatre that better reflects the communities we serve.

Photo gallery: A retrospective of Kent Thompson’s years in Denver

To see more, click the forward arrow on the image above

“After 12 seasons, I believe it’s now time to move onto other opportunities in professional theatre. In the immediate future, I am writing a book on professional directing for a major publisher of drama and theatre books in the US and the UK. After that is done, I look forward to pursuing opportunities elsewhere in the American theatre. I wish the DCPA, the Theatre Company and the entire theatre community of Colorado much success in the future.”

In the coming weeks, DCPA Executive Staff and Theatre Company leaders will create a transition team, which will develop an interim plan as we embark on a national search for a new Artistic Director. Thompson will remain in an advisory capacity through the end of the current 2016/17 season.

Selected previous NewsCenter coverage:
The Christians: Five things we learned at first rehearsal
Where the blade meets the band: Kent Thompson on Sweeney Todd
Kent Thompson on The Bard, The Creature and the soul of his audience
2016-17 season: Two world premieres and a return to classics
Westminster High School tackles immigration with DCPA’s Just Like Us
How Thompson turned questions into exclamation points