Cindy Marinangel To Star In World Premiere Of Marlene At Winterfest 2018

Actress Cindy Marinangel will star in next month's World Premiere of Marlene, a new one-woman play about German actress, singer, patriot and feminist Marlene Dietrich, at the New York Theatre Festival's Winterfest 2018.

Marlene is scheduled for three performances during the annual two-month festival at the Hudson Guild Theatre: 6:15 p.m. Feb. 19, 9 p.m. Feb. 23 and 3:30 p.m. Feb. 25. The theater is located at 441 West 26th St. between Ninth and Tenth avenues.

Written by Willard Manus and directed by Judith Rose, Marlene was workshopped in August 2017 at the Write Act Repertory Theatre in Los Angeles. All five performances drew sold-out, standing-room only crowds who were eager to watch Marinangel take on the challenging role of Dietrich during a period in the icon's life in which she had to use her smarts to find the courage to get ahead - and to survive.

"As an actress, I found it important to connect with what I identified with most from her," Marinangel says. "She was known for her sensuality, but I believe both her strength and her vulnerability were also very important. That is what I will bring to the stage in February, to make her human; to show all facets of how she loved, how she had her heart broken and how she fought. I hope to show the struggles she went through as well as how amazing and fabulous she was when she got on stage, was in a film or when she entertained in general."

Marlene is a based on a true story. Set in May 1960, the play takes place when German-born Dietrich returned to the Berlin stage for the first time since fleeing the Hitler regime in the 1930's. Inside her dressing room at the Tatiana Palast Theater, she weighs whether to go through with the live performance despite threats on her life by Nazi sympathizers who resented her for having spent much of World War II entertaining American soldiers on the front lines.

To them she is a turncoat; a traitor who deserves to be shot and killed on stage.

Theatre critics have already hailed Marinangel's portrayal of Dietrich. Marinangel "superbly captures the multi-faceted character of the Hollywood diva while never appearing just a flat imitation of Marlene," a German World reviewer wrote. "Instead, she truly immerses herself completely into the character of Marlene Dietrich. Marinangel's excellent performance made me catch myself many times thinking that I was watching the real Marlene."

Cindy Marinangel is an international actress, a Lifetime Member of The Actors Studio (having studied under Mark Rydell, the late Martin Landau, Ellen Burstyn and Alec Baldwin) as well as a Chicago Second City Conservatory graduate (under teachers Nia Vardalos, Stephen Colbert and more). Her casting is strong, sexy and funny, and although the actress also is adept at drama, she recently ventured into the standup comedy world performing in LA and New York. Marinangel was recently seen in "Beverly Hills Christmas," a holiday film starring actor Dean Cain that airs seasonally on UPtv.

Marinangel has earned leading stage roles since she was in kindergarten. That was when she played her first queen and memorized not only her own lines - but everyone else's, too. As an adult, Marinangel has continued on the boards in Chicago, New Orleans, Las Vegas, Berlin and Los Angeles in straight plays, dance shows as well as musicals. Marinangel has originated over twelve roles in new plays to great reviews - most recently in the farce Blinded and in Marlene. Marinangel is an adept hostess as well, lending her interview skills to charity events as well as over 100 online radio shows that she produced as well as hosted.

Marinangel is the owner of Angel Baker Productions. Alongside her international creative team, Marinangel recently wrote, produced and starred in "Eternal Waltz," an award-winning short film sponsored in part by the Johann Strauss Foundation of Germany. The film won "Best Acting Ensemble- Short" at the Culver City Film Festival, as well as multiple awards in the competition circuit. For more information on the film, visit www.EternalWaltzFilm.com.

Marinangel also is a voice-over artist. Her deep, unique voice was personally chosen by superstar Beyonce's family to narrate an international half-hour special for E! Entertainment. Cindy also voiced two characters in the best-selling video game Brutal Legends, which also featured Jack Black, Ozzie Osbourne and other rock legends.

Marinangel is a competitive ballroom dancer with a passion for Latin dancing. She is a contralto/alto singer with adeptness for torch songs. Marinangel graduated Cum Laude from Purdue University and is an avid kitten rescuer who is passionate about her cruelty-free diet and lifestyle.

Marinangel is a proud member of SAG-AFTRA and Actors Equity. Please see her website below for demos, reviews and headshots, etc. (additional footage available on YouTube.) For more information, visit www.cindymarinangel.com.

Willard Manus is a playwright, journalist and novelist. He is a member of the Playwrights/Directors Unit of The Actors Studio. His most recent plays are Joe and Marilyn: A Love Story, Frank and Ava (now a motion picture) and Who Killed Comrade Rabbit? His most widely-known novel is "Mott the Hoople," from which the British rock band took its name.

Judith Rose is a member of Actors Equity, the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers as well as the Playwrights/Directors Unit of The Actors Studio. She directed Ed Asner and Estelle Harris in When One is Gone, and Betty Garrett and Tess Harper in Wendy and Me. In 2017, Rose directed Broadway veteran Maybin Hewes in Still Struttin' and Don & Me, both one-woman musical shows. She was assistant director to Emmy-winning choreographer Walter Painter on Fleeting Moments, a documentary about the working lives of professional dancers.

For Marlene tickets and more information visit: http://brownpapertickets.com/event/3200441.