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Bill Marshall is a Principal Consultant and Partner at Harvey Marshall Berling Associates. Along with fellow HMBA Partner David Harvey, Bill manages the firm’s New York City office.

He oversees the Lighting, Audio-Visual and Theater consulting services provided by the firm. Bill has more than 40 years of experience in the design of theater, broadcast studios and audio/video facilities. While you can find his whole bio on our website – and it’s impressive – here are some other insights into this remarkable practitioner.

Hooked since high school.
Bill got his start in theater as a rising freshman when he answered a call to join his high school’s television studio. Part of the work entailed drawing and other artistic executions in a no-computer era, and it got him recruited to help with scenery for the school’s plays. “Then I was hooked,” he says. “I was the set and lighting designer and the stage manager. I ended up doing this work for three or four other high schools. I went on to get my bachelor’s and master’s degrees in theater. It’s what I’ve been doing ever since.”

All the world’s a stage.
Bill believes that every project that involves lighting – hotels, television studios, corporate offices, whatever – should strive for a theater-quality result. Indeed, it was his unhappiness with the state of the discipline that led to a adding architectural lighting to the services they provided. “If a project has lights, we do it,” he says. “That means more than 100 television studios, national political conventions, theme parks, huge trade shows, war rooms for the Pentagon. Everything and anything.”

A theatrical family.
Bill’s wife runs one of the largest Broadway costume shops, For over forty years she has made costumes for almost every Broadway show you can think of. “Hamilton, Wicked, you name it,” he says. “50 years of every Broadway musical you can imagine.” Does he have a favorite? “Ballroom. It was Michael Bennet’s first show after ‘A Chorus Line.’ That’s one of the first shows my wife had a really big part of. We got to attend opening night. It was truly memorable.”

We all have a favorite.
Choosing a favorite from among hundreds of challenging, high-profile and rewarding projects is tough. But one stands out for Bill: Madison Square Garden. He was extensively involved in its renovation, including the design of the Theater at Madison Square Garden as well as the interior and exterior lighting and the audio-video systems for the entire complex. “That involved everything,” he says. “And that includes having to negotiate the code with the building department which at the time did not work for such a large room. It’s the most difficult project I have ever done.”