Lisa B. Thompson, PhD
Writes the Plays She Wants To See​​
“I was planning to be a lawyer!” laughs Lisa B. Thompson, her gorgeous smile, keen eyes, and totally fabulous glasses all punctuating her words with glints. After spending the first minute in her company, it’s abundantly clear that she would have been one hell of a lawyer. Instead, this formidable thinker/doer — whose questions penetrate straight to the core, and whose observations draw effortlessly from both vast book knowledge and lived experience — felt the pull to write. “I followed Toni Morrison’s advice,” muses Lisa, “‘If there’s a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.’” This award-winning scholar/writer inadvertently fell into playwriting with some measure of resistance. “But,” she beams, “I found the collaborative playfulness of theatre-making so deeply satisfying that now: If there’s a play I wish I could see, I’m driven to write it.”
 
Lucky for Austin, Lisa, who was born and raised in San Francisco and remained in California for much of her extensive education and research (BA in English and MA in African American Studies from UCLA; PhD in Modern Thought and Literature from Stanford; post-doc in the English Department at UC-Davis), now holds the rank of full professor in UT Austin’s Department of African and African Diaspora Studies. Her refreshing, not-your-average-professorial tone explains why her classes are in high demand: she considers her students as genuine mentors and collaborators, and she encourages them to use creative approaches to organize their project ideas. A collegiate cross-trainer, Professor Thompson’s classes within the College of Liberal Arts are frequented by theatre students from the College of Fine Arts, and she teaches a graduate seminar called Performing Blackness co-listed through the Department of Theatre and Dance. 
 
But Lisa (who prefers to be on a first-name basis in her art life since she is Professor or Dr. Thompson at school) doesn’t just handle full-time teaching plus the new administrative role as Advisor to the Dean of the College of Liberal Arts for Mentoring and Support. She is also a devoted Mom, a caring mentor, and a local theatre leader — creating time to help guide both The VORTEX and Austin Playhouse as a member of their boards. An active theatre-maker, her plays are produced all over the country (and internationally) but, she states warmly, “I’ve been embraced by the Austin theatre community. And I’m glad my life is built here where I can maintain a porous wall between the arts world and academia — as they do feed each other.”

Having stepped into the Austin theatre scene nearly 10 years ago, she’s observed its limitations and its whiteness, as well as its progress and potential. When asked how she would like to see Austin theatre grow, Lisa chooses her words carefully in a split second and speaks at lighting speed: “I’d like to see major support from wealthy individuals and theatres in our city for locally-written plays about Black life. And more plays by and about LatinX and Asian life, too — there has to be more than one token-check-the-diversity-box production per season to foster any understanding of the breadth and depth of cultural realities — there is not one monolithic Black (or Asian or LatinX) experience! Plus, I’d like to see more diverse theatrical styles. I’d like to see people of color have more physical spaces to do their work. I’d like to see the limited space that has been available become more vital through effective management...” She checks in with a flash of eagle-eye empathy to make sure her listener is keeping up: “I could keep going — should I keep going?”

The endearing self-awareness of her erupting ideas makes being with Lisa a complete delight. She lives in intellectual generosity and thoroughly explores conversational possibilities while also keeping on track. Getting to spend even a little bit of time with her is an energizing, playful ride.

What’s it like to inhabit a whole world of Lisa B. Thompson’s creation? Austin actor/writer Valoneecia Tolbert, who premiered the role of Beverly in The Mamalogues in 2019 directed by Rudy Ramirez (Color Arc Productions/The VORTEX) and who played SBF2 in Single Black Female at Ground Floor Theatre directed by Matrex Kilgore in early 2020, explains: “The Mamalogues was the first time in my acting career that I played a Black woman, written by a Black woman, who was successful and in my actual age group. The stories richly reflected the conversations that I’ve had with friends, family, and also my own thought processes for what I want for my future. A lot of people don’t know how rare this experience is. More than that, the way that Lisa remains accessible and relates to you as an actor, the way that she lets you play within the words of her script, and the fact that her writing so effortlessly gives you that ability is a testament to her talents. She is kind, brilliant and dedicated to art. I’m incredibly grateful for her talent and I’m more grateful for her humanity.”

Valoneecia’s cast mate from Single Black Female, Michelle Alexander, agrees: “Lisa is just a phenomenal woman! I have yet to work closely with a playwright who awakens the Black voice with such a fragrance I cannot describe! One of my favorite quotes was from Single Black Female when the ladies are talking about being with family over the holidays. SBF1 is simply trying to explain why she‘s not really into marriage: ‘Never give the feminist line to women who believe you better fix a man’s plate at any human gathering.’ I love her work because it’s almost always relatable, and being a Black woman, her representation matters to me.”

Michelle sums it up — for our whole city: “I‘m grateful that Austin, Texas has had a chance to experience such brilliance!”