After designing new sets for the very first musical, The Black Crook, at Niblo's Garden in 1867, Marston served as the resident scenic designer at first the Union Square Theatre and later the Madison Square Theatre.
[2] Before coming to the United States in 1867, Marston followed his parents into the profession of acting in his native city.
[1] Marston left Brighton for New York City and embarked upon a career as a scenic designer.
His first scenic designs for Broadway were made in 1867 for The Black Crook;[1] a work which had premiered the year before at Niblo's Garden and was regarded as the very first musical.
This was followed by the designs for The White Fawn (1868); a work which was intended as the successor to The Black Crook but which failed to gain the same popularity as the original.