Marty Burnett Sets the Scene for North Coast Rep and Ellenstein's 100th Show

Not many set designers can work with unit sets as creatively and effectively as Marty Burnett, the Resident Scenic Designer for North Coast Rep Theatre. Production after production, Burnett manages to create sets that function perfectly for the theatre’s intimate stage specs.

Now in his 23rd season with North Coast, Burnett has designed a whopping 166 shows in succession for the company since he first arrived on the scene in 1992. In addition to NCRT, he has designed productions for many other ensembles on both coasts and in between. In his 30–year career, he has designed over 250 plays, musicals and trade shows.

"The one thing I heard over and over again was how good Marty was," says current NCRT chief David Ellenstein, who took over the helm in 2003. "The way he tends to detail and adorns it is always specific to the show, it’s always creative... always inventive." Burnett takes design to a whole new level. How does he do it? In a recent interview, the designer provided some insight into his prolific output.

Tell us about your journey to becoming a set designer.

I moved to San Diego from Nebraska in 1979 to pursue acting. I have a journalism/ theater degree from Creighton University. I had a brother here, which made the choice easier. The cold Nebraska winters were another deciding factor!

What happened with your acting from there?

My first experience in acting was at the old Coronado Playhouse. I acted in quite a few shows under the direction of Tom McCorry. I had some ideas for the set for One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest and he said I should design it. I had no experience in design, but it came easy. James Baker from Grossmont College became my mentor and helped me with the technical requirements of drafting, rendering and the like. The set was well received and I had found a new thrill in becoming creative. I acted and designed about twelve shows there, but my love was leaning more to design.

You also build sets as well as design them. Are you equally enamored with both pursuits?

I do love designing and building. I have an idea and then create it. It’s fulfilling. 

You seem quite modest for a person of your many accomplishments. How do you maintain your unpretentious attitude?

Am I? Thank you! I didn’t know that was a perception. I just keep focused on the next show. I am always excited about new challenges!

Do you find it a special challenge to work with such an intimate space as the one for North Coast Rep?

Not really. I had a pole downstage center at the old Coronado Playhouse, which I had to incorporate in all shows. Any theater space is a blessing after dealing with that!

What are you enjoying most about the current show, Now You See It?

The magic tricks incorporated into the set. That’s all I can say about that at this time!

Which shows have you not yet designed that you would like to do?

I haven’t designed much Shakespeare or done enough abstract work that would seem to be a more creative challenge. One day!

NCRT Artistic Director David Ellenstein shares some of his excitement and anticipation over his upcoming milestone: his 100th performance with the company.

Tell us about your 100th performance with the company: the play, the cast and when it will be performed.

Hedda Gabler by Henrik Ibsen, World Premiere Translation by Anne– Charlotte Harvey. I will be directing Mhari Sandoval, Bruce Turk, Richard Baird, Robyn Cohen, Ray Chambers and Cristina Soria. Performances begin June 1, 2016. We created our production of Ibsen’s Ghosts in this manner several seasons back to great success.

What first brought you to NCR? Did you "emigrate" from Los Angeles expressly to run NCR?

I was living in Beachwood Canyon in the Hollywood Hills with my wife Denise and our newborn son Jamie and working as AD for the LAREP, flying back and forth to Phoenix as AD for the Arizona Jewish Theatre Company and freelancing all over the country. I was hesitant to apply for the open AD position at North Coast Rep, but my wife said, "You’re applying, you’re getting the job and we’re moving." She actually began packing the house before I was hired. She just knew it was the right move. She was right.

What was your very first production, and when was it produced?

The "very" first was Telemichus Clay by Louis John Carlino at the Company of Angels in LA in 1962—I played the voice of the unborn child. In 6th grade I wrote, directed and starred in Dr. Livingston I Presume. My first professional directing job was at Theatre 40 in Beverly Hills in 1982, where I directed Vanities by Jack Heifner. I took over at North Coast Rep in January of 2003. The first show I directed there was Charley’s Aunt by Brandon Thomas, which opened in June of 2003.

What have been your favorite NCR productions since you’ve been with the company?

The stock but true answer is the one I am working on now. They are all like children and it’s hard to pick a favorite. Some highlights are My Name Is Asher Lev, Shipwrecked!, Halpern and Johnson, Over the Tavern, and Words By Ira Gershwin. This season’s Way Down River and Hedda may well end up on that list.

What are some of your personal reflections on reaching your 100th performance here?

I can’t believe it has been more than 13 years and 100 productions! My life, the theatre and my family have grown and thrived here. This was not necessarily the path I had seen for my career, but being positive about what life presents you is the key. It has been a pretty wonderful ride.

Do you feel you’ve accomplished what you set out to do?

For the most part, yes. The theatre has grown tremendously from an artistic standpoint. We are on sound financial footing and I work daily with talented, dedicated and wonderful people. Aside from the respect we have locally, we have developed a national reputation as a theatre that creates first–class work on our stage. The best local actors, as well as actors and directors of national renown, want to work here. We have developed and exported new works that have gone on to have life around the country. My one sore spot has been our inability to build a new venue. We are so overdue for our facility to rise to the level of what we have built as an organization, but I believe that time will come.