She acted out real-life characters that populated her adopted town, as well as fictional characters from musicals she had conceived, composed and danced. Though she no longer can dance, she sat regally on a throne-like chair with costume pieces and props in easy reach, and shared her memories of her life in Death Valley Junction. Marta Becket, the dedicated performer who brought the Amargosa Opera House back to life with her one-woman dance-mime shows, gave her final public performance on Sunday February 12. It’s just a little bit creepy.“The Sitting Down Show” (closing night), Amargosa Opera House, February 12, 2012 However, I have a feeling the murals in the theater look a lot like the paintings on the windows. The opera house was locked up during my visit. You’ll have to check out the Opera House’s official webpage for a peek inside. You can still see them on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, from November to May. Marta retired in 2012, but another performer, Jenna McClintock, took over the shows. After a few years, the outside world discovered Marta and her lonely performances, and actual humans started showing up. And since there were times when no one was in attendance, she painted an audience on the walls. She decided to rent the place, repair it, and hold performances several nights a week.
While there, she noticed the building, peeked through a hole in the wall, and discovered an abandoned, crumbling theater. She was in town to get a flat tire fixed, following a few days of camping in Death Valley. The building was constructed in the 1920’s as part of a Borax company town, but it was in 1967 that Marta Beckett discovered it. The Amargosa Opera House and Hotel is a performing arts center, out here in the middle of nowhere. But there’s one attraction here that actually draws a crowd. It would be easy to stop in Death Valley Junction, look around for a bit, and immediately write it off as a near-ghost town.
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