Theatre in Historic Places: A Ballerina in the Desert's Legacy Lives On at AMARGOSA OPERA HOUSE

Theatre in Historic Places is a series by Los Angeles Senior Editor Ellen Dostal featuring theatre, music, and other arts performances in historic venues around Southern California.

The last place you'd expect to find a ballerina is in the middle of the desert; in a bustling city center full of people to fill an audience, yes, but in Death Valley Junction population less than 20? No, in this cultural hot spot, art is found in the shifting sands and sunset-washed mountains where colors and textures create breathtaking views for but a moment and then are gone.

It had to have been the beauty of the area and its promise of rest and renewal that drew the ballerina to the desert in the first place. Marta Becket was on a camping vacation with her husband following an exhausting solo tour in 1967 when an unexpected flat tire meant taking a detour to the small roadside community for repairs. While he fixed the tire, she scouted the deserted adobes nearby.

Through a small hole in the back door of one of the buildings, she could see the remains of an abandoned theater and instantly fell in love with it. The heart wants what the heart wants, and she knew she was looking at her destiny.

In the early 1920s, the theater had been known as Corkhill Hall. It was a rec center for the miners employed by the Pacific Coast Borax Company and hosted everything from movies and church services to dances and town meetings. The long U-shaped structure also included a hotel, dorms for the miners, a store, dining room, ice cream parlor, and company offices. Los Angeles architect Alexander Hamilton McCullogh designed the complex.

On a whim, Marta and her husband ended up relocating to Death Valley. They rented and renovated the hall, which she rechristened the Amargosa Opera House, after the mining town's original name. For the next 45 years she would be known as the "ballerina in the desert" performing original classical ballet pantomimes and later her "sitting down show" until she retired from the stage in 2012. She also made her own costumes and props, and painted all of the lovely Vaudeville-style backdrops for her performances.

After she stopped performing, Marta continued her passion for dance by teaching her original choreography to younger dancers who would carry on her vision. She attended every performance and could always be found sitting in the front row seat closest to the pot belly stove, house left, to keep warm. Marta passed away on January 30, 2017 at the age of 92.

From the time she was a child, Marta's artistic abilities were obvious. She studied piano and art as a young girl and ballet as a teenager. In her twenties, she appeared on Broadway in the 1946 revival of Showboat, and in A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and A Wonderful Town, both directed by the legendary George Abbott. She also danced in the corps de ballet at Radio City Music Hall, but the desire to create her own work would eventually lead her away from the big city to an oasis in the desert that changed her life.

At first, her audiences were small, and many times there was no one at all, but she danced regularly three nights a week. After a particularly severe flash flood, Marta was in the midst of shoveling a foot of mud out of the hall when she was inspired to put her other artistic talent to use. Over the next four years, she painted a wonderfully lifelike audience covering every inch of the walls in stunning detail. You'd never know from the outside of the building what treasure is hidden inside.

The floor to ceiling images are rich and romantic. Each panel tells a story. In one, a young man seated with his friends leans over the railing to give a rose to the governess (his secret lover) in the box below. In another, ladies of the night take in the show. Marta painted them in honor of a brothel up the road whose madam, once a month, took her girls out for a night of culture to see Marta dance.

The back wall of royalty was the first to be created, making every show a command performance. On the ceiling, golden-haired cherubs play among clouds. There are gossiping ladies, a knight standing guard, nuns on the right, friars on the left, Renaissance revelers, ballerinas warming up, and a scene from the opera Carmen. Even the gypsies have a balcony. Every scene is a delight, created in bold, vivid colors with an artist's loving care. They are as beautiful now as when she first painted them.

Today it is Hilda Vazquez who performs Marta's classical ballet repertoire on Amargosa Opera House's historic stage. The young dancer trained with Alicia Alonso of the Cuban National Ballet and has danced in Mexico, representing the Dominican Republic Ballet. She came to the desert to meet Marta on a road trip (sound familiar?) and was overjoyed when she was later invited to audition when Marta was looking for a dancer to continue her work.

The 40-minute program consisted of three dances the night I attended the show, prefaced by a short recorded narrative by Marta describing her journey to the desert and how she created the opera house. Two of the pieces were choreographed and originally performed by Marta: Cupie Doll, inspired by the first kewpie doll Marta had ever seen at the circus, and Romance, set to the music of Tchaikovsky. Both featured handmade costumes made and worn by Marta. Hilda created the third selection, Let's Play.

Following the program, the gracious young dancer came out and spoke to the audience about the profound effect Marta had on her during the time they worked together. It was a charming evening from beginning to end and a trip I highly recommend for those searching for inspiration of their own.

And so, out in the desert, a ballerina still dances and Marta Becket's legacy lives on. She was a gentle soul with the heart of a true artist. She may be gone but I'm certain, when the moon is right, she still manages to dance across the stage like a will-o'-the-wisp, even if one is looking.

If you're in town for a Saturday night performance, the Amargosa Café serves up some great home cooking. The chef had pot roast on the menu the weekend I visited and it was divine, but be aware that dinner is only available on Saturday nights (plus breakfast and lunch, Friday - Monday). The café shuts down in the dead of summer when temperatures rise above 100 degrees so check their website before you go.

For lodging, the Amargosa Hotel itself has seen better days so your best bet for a comfortable overnight stay is in Furnace Creek or one of the other surrounding towns - or you can chance it and stay onsite. Memorabilia is scattered throughout the lobby and some of the rooms feature Marta's artwork on the walls. You can take a tour of the opera house even if there isn't a performance scheduled and a fascinating documentary about Marta plays continually in the large comfortable common room. Like all historical sites, there are rumors the hotel is haunted. I definitely had my share of unusual occurrences while there....but that is a story for another day.

Amargosa Opera House, 608 Death Valley Junction, Death Valley, CA 92328
More information: 760-852-4441, www.amargosa-opera-house.com
Photo credit: Ellen Dostal

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