Amargosa Opera House season delayed due to storm

The Amargosa Opera House and Hotel at Death Valley Junction, California reopened after torrential rains hit the area late in October, which caused a delay in opening the entertainment season.

Kathy Cheney, an employee of the hotel, said the area was hit so hard for a couple of days all the roads were closed to the town of Death Valley Junction. She said the bad weather caused them to delay their entertainment schedule, which usually begins in October, when the weather cools down. Despite all the road closures, the rain didn't affect the hotel or opera house.

"The rains closed the roads and some of the employees live in Pahrump and they couldn't get to work," she said. "Also, the phones were down in the area for two weeks. We could call out but no one could call in. Although the roads were closed, the water came from the direction of Pahrump, and therefore didn't do any damage to our grounds."

Last summer the water came from Death Valley and destroyed a small levee that protected the grounds. The water flooded the Amargosa Opera House, causing damage to the flooring, which has since been repaired.

The top headliner for the Amargosa Opera House is Jenna McClintock. Her shows will start tonight at 7 p.m. The other shows will be Saturdays at 7 p.m. and then she will have a matinee on Sunday at 2 p.m. This schedule is good through May.

All show tickets can be bought at the hotel front desk and are $20 per person.

McClintock has admired the dancing ability of Marta Becket since she was a little girl of 6 and first saw Beckett perform at the opera house.

At 14, McClintock became the youngest member of the Oakland Ballet and now she brings her talents to the desert and pays homage to Becket by performing Marta's collection of shows.

In addition to the dancing talents of McClintock, the opera house will have two special performances. One by Frederick Foster, who will perform on Nov. 29 at 2 p.m. He will perform Truman Capote's "A Christmas Memory," with musical guests Ryan Almgren on piano and Mikayla Mashore on cello.

Then on Jan.10, the opera house will also be hosting the Scott Land Marionettes. Check with the opera house for schedule changes by calling 760-852-4441

-Contact sports editor Vern Hee at vhee@pvtimes.com