From Blueprint to Bravo: Meet Melissa Hartman

Above: Melissa Hartman, photo by Isaak Berliner

Those incredible sets? Thank our technical director.

When audiences step into Geffen Playhouse and are transported into another world, they’re experiencing the extraordinary work of Technical Director Melissa Hartman. Her path to the stage began early—at just 15, in a high school technical theater class where she built and painted sets, learned to weld, and worked backstage on productions filled with scenic shifts and flying elements. That hands-on introduction sparked a lasting passion, one that continued through college and ultimately shaped her career in production.

Hartman has been a cornerstone of Geffen Playhouse productions since 2018, helping to shape the visual storytelling that defines each show. After studying Theatre Design at UC Santa Barbara and discovering a deep love for the physical craft of theater—particularly carpentry and rigging—she moved to Los Angeles and began working professionally, building and loading in shows across the city before finding a creative home at the Geffen.

In her role, she works closely with scenic designers to transform the unique dimensions of the Geffen Playhouse stage into stunning and immersive sets. Every production presents a new challenge: how to take a designer’s vision and make it structurally sound, functional for performance, and seamless within the theater’s space.

“It’s like solving a giant, threedimensional puzzle,” Hartman says. “You’re balancing creativity with physics, storytelling with logistics. The goal is always to support the story in a way that feels effortless to the audience, even though there’s a lot happening behind the scenes.”

L-R: Angela Lewis, Kimberly Scott, Amber Chardae Robinson, and Brandee Evans in the 2024 production of Black Cypress Bayou. Scenic Design by Lawrence E. Moten III. Photo by Erik Carter.

A key part of Hartman’s process happens far beyond Los Angeles. She frequently travels to Calgary, Canada, where many of the Geffen’s sets are constructed. There, she works closely with build shops to ensure every detail meets the theater’s exacting standards and that each piece will fit perfectly once it arrives in Los Angeles. “By the time a set gets here, there’s no guesswork,” she explains. “We’ve already walked through every inch of it. My job is to make sure it arrives ready to do what it needs to do.”

Once the set is delivered, Hartman oversees a crew of skilled technicians— often numbering more than a dozen— who assemble these highly customized environments in an impressively short timeframe. In just one week, a full set is installed, tested, and prepared for the beginning of the technical rehearsal process.

“It’s a fast turnaround with infinite possibilities for disaster,” Hartman says. “I hold my breath until that first scene change goes off without a hitch. But watching all the theatrical elements come together by the end of tech—scenery, lights, sound—is always a thrill and why I love this job.”

Through her leadership and craftsmanship, Melissa Hartman ensures that every Geffen Playhouse production begins with a strong foundation; one that quite literally builds the world audiences come to experience.