Previews: DIETRICH at Revolutiion Stage Company

SPECIAL TO BWW BY CARA DAY

The legendary sex symbol Marlene Dietrich, celebrated for her groundbreaking performances in film and on stage, comes to life in DIETRICH, a one-woman play-with-music starring Cindy Marinangel. This production will take center stage at the Revolution Stage Company in Palm Springs for two nights only, April 4 and 5, 2025.

DIETRICH, starring Cindy Marinangel, is based on the real-life story of actress and humanitarian Marlene Dietrich.  Set in May 1960, the play is set in Dietrich’s dressing room at the Titania-Palast Theater. The actress has returned to the Berlin stage for the first time since fleeing the Hitler regime in the 1930s, and Dietrich weighs whether to go through with her live performance despite threats on her life by Nazi sympathizers.

Known for her collaborations with Jewish director Josef von Sternberg, Dietrich defied the Nazi regime by becoming an American citizen in 1937 and actively supporting Allied troops during World War II. She sold more US war bonds than anyone and entertained soldiers on the front lines for six years. Dietrich donated Hollywood earnings to help Jewish refugees escape persecution and find housing and jobs in America. Her extraordinary efforts earned her many awards, among them the United States Presidential Medal of Freedom, France’s Legion d’Honneur, and Israel’s Medallion of Valor, making her the first German-born (as well as the first woman) recipient of this prestigious honor.

“Playing Marlene Dietrich has been an amazing experience for me,” said Marinangel. “She was a woman ahead of her time… brave, compassionate, and unapologetically herself. Bringing this night of her story to life is a powerful experience. The greatest gift for me has been to bear witness to the moving, personal memories evoked from the audience after shows.” 

Marinangel is an award-winning international actress, producer and filmmaker. She is a Lifetime Member of The Actors Studio, studying under Mark Rydell, the late Martin Landau, Ellen Burstyn and Alec Baldwin, as well as a Chicago Second City Conservatory graduate. Marinangel sang as Dietrich in Times Square for International Peace Day, and she regularly performs an hour-long cabaret show as the icon.

Now, Marinangel is bringing Dietrich’s legacy to Palm Springs, paying tribute to one of the most influential women of the 20th century. DIETRICH is produced by Sea Angel Productions, LLC, written by Willard Manus and directed by Glenda Morgan Brown.

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