[1] Originally an architecture student, Thomson dropped out of university to become an artist,[2] and began working in theatre after meeting director Jim Sharman in 1969.
[3] They had a long and successful work collaboration together, beginning at the Old Tote Theatre Company, before working on a series of hugely successful musical productions including the Melbourne production of Hair, and the original Australian and London productions of Jesus Christ Superstar and The Rocky Horror Show.
[4][5] When Sharman directed The Rocky Horror Picture Show movie based on the musical, and its sequel Shock Treatment, Thomson worked on their set design again.
[7][1] He has designed for all the major Australian theatre companies,[8] with credits including Holding the Man, Keating!, The Gates of Egypt, Capricornia, Stuff Happens, Run Rabbit Run, Buried Child, My Zinc Bed, The Laramie Project, Aftershocks, The Tempest, The Master Builder and Ghosts.
[9] For Sydney Theatre Company, where he was Associate Director in 1981,[10] Thomson has designed for productions of Chicago, Festen, The Ham Funeral, Coriolanus, King Lear, The Real Thing, The One Day of the Year, Up for Grabs, The White Devil, A Cheery Soul, The Doll Trilogy, Arcadia, and Steel City.