Paul Tazewell made history by becoming the first Black man to win the Oscar for Best Costume Design at the 97th edition of the Academy Awards.
Tazewell, a previous nominee for "West Side Story," already has an Emmy award ("The Wiz Live") and Tony award ("Hamilton") under his belt. He triumphed over fellow costume designers: Arianne Phillips ("A Complete Unknown"), Linda Muir ("Nosferatu"), Lisy Christl ("Conclave") and Janty Yates and David Crossman ("Gladiator II").
Tazewell has swept the season scooping up the BAFTA, Critics Choice and Costume Designers Guild awards along the way. He was also named one of Variety's 10 artisans to watch in costume design, and was honored with the Variety Artisan Award in costume design at the Santa Barbara Film Festival.
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For "Wicked," he designed over a thousand costumes for the big-screen adaptation of the Broadway musical. His most iconic pieces were creating Glinda's bubble dress and Elphaba's black dress.
Using the springboard of the 1939 film, "The Wizard of Oz," Tazewell began with the idea of why Elphaba played by Cynthia Erivo wears black. He felt it set her apart in this colorful world of Shiz, but Tazewell also explained it's a reflection of her mourning for her mother, who died in childbirth. His challenge was in bringing richness to his choice since "much of the detail gets absorbed into the black."
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