DIRECTING

THE RAINMAKER
"..Talented director Don Nguyen bets his Bellevue Little Theatre production on the talents of Nora Vetter and Brian Poole, and the results are as refreshing as the first drops of rain after a long drought...with Nguyen at the helm and the strength of the rest of the cast, this becomes a must-see show.." -- John Keenan , Omaha World Herald | Read Full Review

MISTER ROBERTS
"...because director Don Nguyen knows how to turn a large cast into a true ensemble ...attention to detail in staging...The night belongs to Nguyen, who has taken this talent pool about as far as it can go in delivering both laughs and a lump in the throat." -- Bob Fischbach, Omaha World Herald | Read Full Review

THE LISBON TRAVIATA
"The play's success greatly depends upon the intelligence of a capable director who can meaningfully connect McNally's symbolism and motifs... Don Nguyen superbly meets the McNally challenge. While maintaining the proper pacing required to exhibit McNally's unsung arias, as it were, Nguyen has designed imaginative stage movement patterns to contribute to the vital visual rhythms. In the process, he beautifully bridges the contrasts between the two acts. " -- Steve Eskew, The Reader

THE LAST FIVE YEARS
"Don Nguyen, however, is very good at what he does. He can spot a show with a lot of promise and then find the people who can make it better than you thought it would be. (I didn't think I could enjoy another farce until I saw his Lend Me a Tenor.)... Nguyen accomplishes the impossible with the Shelterbelt space. Just look at what he did for Tommy. And now with John Carlson's help, he's done it again... Nguyen ends his Shelterbelt reign as artistic director with this thoughtful production. It's a brilliant way to go out – in style " -- PerformanceOmaha.com | Read Full Review

Brave, daunting, talented displays of vocal and acting range by two attractive young performers. ``The Last Five Years`` is emotionally and musically rich.
Bob Fischbach, Omaha World Herald  Read Full Review

LEND ME A TENOR
Director Don Nguyen keeps the plot moving at a madcap pace that never falters and does a superb job of ratcheting up the anarchy to absurd heights.  At the same time, his work here is a study in eye-of-the-storm focus.
Dee Patney, The Reader | Read Full Review

"There are endless physical gags and collisions, courtesy of both the script and director Don Nguyen. Nguyen handles his revolving-door comedy on a split set with admirable ease, moving his actors around in what amounts to a miracle of timing." -- Jim Delmont, Omaha World Herald | Read Full Review

"Don Nguyen, director, has taken already cartoonish characters and stretched them as far as he can. The result is pure hilarity" -- Julien Fielding, PerformanceOmaha.com | Read Full Review

"Leading the cast, of course, is Don Nguyen as director. The show's pacing is relentless and never misses a beat, something Nguyen can certainly take credit for" -- Jason Keese, Bellevue Leader| Read Full Review

TOMMY
"Director Don Nguyen and his cast present a vigorous, surprisingly effective "The Who's Tommy," a rock opera about a psychosomatically deaf, dumb and blind boy who becomes an idiot savant - a pinball champion and a pop idol...Nguyen's set pieces, which include sliding panels and a magic mirror, are cleverly designed and used - with all the prop movement smoothly accomplished." -- Jim Delmont, Omaha World Herald

SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE
"The Chanticleer Theatre showed up everyone by staging Stephen Sondheim’s Sunday in the Park with George, brilliantly realized by director Don Nguyen. I never in my life thought I would see this production, especially not in Council Bluffs. If I could trade in all of my theater experiences for one show, this would be the one I’d do it for"
Julien Fielding, PerformanceOmaha.com | Read Full Review

With production values rivaling the Omaha Community Playhouse, director Don Nguyen's "Sunday in the Park With George" distinguishes itself in nearly every aspect of musical theater.
Bob Fischbach , Omaha World Herald | Read Full Review

THE MARRIAGE OF BETTE & BOO
"Depending on how you play it, "Bette and Boo" could be extremely cruel and insensitive. The doctor tosses the dead babies onto the floor, saying little more than "dead." But thanks to Nguyen's insightful direction and the cast's talents, the piece balances humor with horror. Nguyen unearthed some real acting gems for this production, especially in his actresses...Thanks to the almost surreal performances of the Shelterbelt cast, the production produces some hearty laughs and true moments of zen. " -- Julien Fielding, The Reader

THREE THE HARD WAY
"Don Nguyen has done a fine job coaxing a smooth ensemble effort from his actors, all of whom are at ease in their roles." -- Jim Delmont, Omaha World Herald

Don directed a very moving production of my play THREE THE HARD WAY. It was an unforgettable experience. I've seen that play done 9 or 10 times, and Don made me see it fresh -- surprised me, brought me to tears, etc. He's a kick-ass director and I couldn't recommend him more highly.
Linda Eisenstein, Playwright - Thre The Hard Way

CORPUS CHRISTI
"The retelling of the basic New Testament stories actually is less compelling, a bit episodic, although McNally throws in a twist or two. But theatergoers may find themselves almost counting down to the crucifixion, a sequence beautifully staged by director Don Nguyen." -- John Keenan, Omaha World Herald

ACTING

TAKE ME OUT
"An outstanding supporting ensemble kicks things up another notch. Though all are solid, Don Nguyen stands out as a bottledup Japanese pitcher, particularly at the start of Act 3 as he explains why he doesn`t speak English."
Bob Fischbach, Omaha World Herald

"Don Nguyen is a standout as Takeshi Kawabata, the intensely reserved Japanese pitcher.  Picked on and passed off by the other teammates for the ill-assumed language gap, Nguyen shines when he speaks about his languages, Japanese and English"
Rachel Buttner, The Reader

BIG RIVER
"Also notable are two hilarious novelty numbers: Dutch Haling as Papp Finn, growling about "Guv'ment," and Don Nguyen as a young fool enthusing about the glories of 'Arkansas.' They're excellent character actors as well"
Bob Fischbach, Omaha World Herald "Don Nguyen got some of the night's biggest laughs playing several characters. His Young Fool from Arkansas was especially appealing."
Tim McMahon, Daily Nonpareil GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS
"Nguyen strikes the right note as John...Wassem and Nguyen stay right with each other through Mamet's rapid-fire dialogue...Nguyen's silence in response is also striking, an example of what a good actor can do with no lines at all."
John Keenan , Omaha World Herald  Read Full Review


THE KING AND I
"Nguyen, in the role made famous by Yul Brynner, is razor sharp - sharp enough to make 40-year-old dialogue as fresh and funny as last week's "Will & Grace." Nguyen's delivery and timing consistently drew bursts of laughter from a preview audience of 60 last weekend." -- Bob Fischbach, Omaha World Herald  Read Full Review "Nguyen's timing wins more laughs than Yul Brynner's king could imagine. Yet he does justice to the monarch's complexity as he struggles with the modern world represented by Anna." -- Warren Franke, Daily Nonpareil  Read Full Review "Watching Nguyen stomp around, feign understanding and manipulate the people and situations around him is the best time you’re going to have this month. He should get a TAG award for this performance, as I think it’s some of his finest work."  -- Julien Fielding, PerformanceOmaha  Read Full Review
SHELTERSKELTER 8
"Don Nguyen, as that victim, is as nasty as you could wish for playing a sadistic knife-wielder, yet minutes earlier he's a stitch as a zealous cemetery guard wielding a tennis racket like a sword in "Shakespeare Lives" by Mark Harvey Levine."
-- Bob Fischbach, Omaha World Herald LOVE IS STRANGE
"Beth Weindel, as Sylvia, and Don Nguyen, as Mickey, give gutsy, wrenching performances that are convincing not only in their portrayal of fear and anger, but also in showing the complexity of twisted love that keeps the abuse going. Fight scenes are harrowing and must leave the two actors bruised and spent. " -- Bob Fischbach, Omaha World Herald "The result is a fascinating performance. Nguyen appears to be anything but physically intimidating (here both Carlson and Link tower over him). But from the beginning, when Mickey charms both Sylvia and the audience with his self-effacing intelligence, Nguyen uses his voice and body to convey a need for control that turns terrifying when his capacity for brutality is revealed. Most "evil husband" portrayals are exactly that, but Schweiger and Nguyen keep Mickey human, which makes him all the more creepy." -- Meg Arader, The Reader

BEYOND THERAPY
"Don Nguyen is terrific as poker-faced, manipulating Bob...." -- Bob Fischbach, Omaha World Herald

FROM SHELTERBELT WITH LOVE 2 (The Harlequin Maneuvre)
"But the strongest scripts sneak up on you with a little food for thought, especially "Sad Money" and "Johnny Cash Is Not for Sissies," both by Tim Kaldahl, and "The Harlequin Maneuver" by Don Nguyen." -- Bob Fischbach, Omaha World Herald "Act Two starts off equally well with the work of the Shelterbelt’s executive director, Don Nguyen. He wrote and directed "The Harlequin Maneuver," which is by far the show’s funniest one-act." -- Patricia Sindelar, Omaha Weekly Reader