"N. Thomas Pedersen's direction is zesty and innovative,"

-- Bruce Feld, The Los Angeles Times

"The student orchestra was small but sonorous, expert and stylishly directed by N. Thomas Pedersen. An examination of the program reveals that there were only three trombones, but while they were playing I could have sworn there were 76."

-- Joseph McLellan, The Washington Post

"Conductor N. Thomas Pedersen led the small orchestra and the cast in a well-paced and accented treatment of the music."

-- Joseph McLellan, The Washington Post

“Be ready for a big production when you see The Most Happy Fella at The Catholic University of America’s Hartke Theatre. A 27-piece orchestra, lavish staging, more than 30 actors, gorgeous singing, and delightful dance numbers are part of a three act show that runs close to 3 hours. The show has a little dialogue and a lot of music, some of which is in the style of show tunes and some distinctly more operatic. All of it is sung beautifully and when sound levels were adjusted after the first act, the audience was treated to standout performances.”

— Chuck Leonard, DC Metro Theater Arts

“It’s the actors though that make the night so special. The chorus is large and all are extremely good dancers and singers. Musical Director N. Thomas Pedersen summons beautiful singing from them with the help of a complete orchestra that matched them but never overpowered them. [...] This is an ambitious score, for singer and instrumentalist, and everyone in the orchestra and on the stage succeeded wildly.”

— Jessica Vaughan, DC Metro Theater Arts