"As a Broadway stage designer during the great heyday of prolific producer, David Merrick, Burlingame enjoyed more than his share of the spectacular ups and downs, hilarities and epiphanies of a theatre career. Collaborating with a variety of directors, including Franco Zeffirelli, George Abbott, Peter Brook, George Roy Hill, and Peter Hall, made for a wide spectrum of experiences to share. When he moved from the world of theatre to the realm of opera, he had the rare opportunity to design new productions for divas Beverly Sills, Martina Arroyo, Joan Sutherland, and Leontyne Price. The reader is invited to join him backstage to meet a colorful cast of characters, and to experience the roller-coaster ride of a show business career."--P. [4] of cover.