Amargosa Opera House

The fascinating story of Marta Becket begins as a small girl growing up in New York City. At the age of three, she discovered a burning desire to dance, which she never outgrew. Her father was a newspaper reporter, and because of this, he got passes to concerts, the opera, the ballet, and the theater. At least once a week, Marta and her parents would attend one of these events. Inspired by these experiences she found her home.
"Outside, in the world, people struck each other, yelled, honked horns," she says. "Inside, in the theater, they conversed by singing and dancing. I knew that was where I belonged."

Before long she was amazing her dance teachers with her talent. She also studied piano and art on a scholarship at the age of nine, developing as an artist and pianist.

As a young woman, she danced at Radio City Music Hall, and on Broadway. She appeared in "Showboat", "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn", and "A Wonderful Town". But Marta wanted to dance her own dances, design her own costumes, and create her own show. Which is exactly what she did, and she took her solo show on the road.

Married in 1962, Marta and her husband found themselves in California, in the spring of 1967, after months of touring. They decided to spend a week's vacation camping in Death Valley, behind the visitor's center. One morning they awoke to a flat tire on their trailer. A park ranger directed them to Death Valley Junction to have the tire repaired.

While her husband attended to the tire, Marta began to explore the old adobe buildings. Walking down the long colonnade of what was known as the Amargosa Hotel, she was hypnotically drawn to the end, and around the corner where she discovered the largest building in the row. It was a theater! She could not believe her eyes.

At the back of the building, she found a hole in a door, where she could see inside. There she saw a small stage with faded calico curtains hanging from a track. Debris was strewn all over the warped floor boards, and several rows of wooden benches faced the stage. It was obvious the theater had been abandoned for quite some time. It seemed to be the only unused building in Death Valley Junction. "Peering through the tiny hole, I had the distinct feeling that I was looking at the other half of myself. The building seemed to be saying.....Take me.....do something with me...I offer you life"

The next day Marta and her husband located the town manager and agreed to rent the theater for $45.00 a month, and to assume responsibility for repairs. Originally called Corkhill Hall, she renamed the theater the Amargosa Opera House.

Marta gave her first performance in the theater on February 10th, 1968. On that rainy night, she danced for an audience of twelve adults, children and grandchildren. From that day on the doors of the Amargosa Opera House opened without fail at 7:45 pm and the curtain parted promptly at 8:15 pm every Friday, Saturday, and Monday night for many years. (See 2004-2005 schedule for current performance schedules)

The audiences consisted of locals and curious tourists, and sometimes no one came at all. Working in the Opera House cleaning up after a rainstorm, Marta had a flash of inspiration. She would paint an entire audience on the walls of the theater. It took four years to complete the murals on the walls. Then Marta started work on the ceiling, which took another two years and was completed in 1974.

In January of 1983, Marta's husband left for other interests, but as fate would have it, at the same time another important person entered her life. Mr. Thomas J. Willett stepped in as stage manager and M.C. and has been with her ever since. A natural comedian, he acts as a performing stage manager, playing parts, co-starring with Marta, and adding humor to the classical ambience of the performances.

Marta says she does not plan for the years ahead. She does not try to guess what she will be able to do ten years from now. For the present, she dances, and she continues to paint. She has her stage to call her own. Her imagination has carried her from the past to the present. From New York to Death Valley Junction.....and a tiny theater nobody wanted.

"I am grateful to have found the place where I can fulfill my dreams and share them with the passing scene...for as long as I can."