After a successful premiere in NYC in 2015, my 1940s era play ADELE IN BERLIN will be making its Rochester debut in September 2023!
ADELE IN BERLIN tells the story of Adele, a young German woman captured in 1945 by the Soviet Army who has returned to her home city of Berlin in 1946. She attempts to make a new start and leave Berlin with Tony, the American soldier who unwittingly rescued her from the camp when she stowed away on his truck. But a shadow from the past with a vendetta and a gun stands in her way. ADELE IN BERLIN is a dramatic glimpse into the oft-overlooked plight of the vanquished German women who worked in clubs, sifted rubble, and did whatever they could to survive in a home no longer their own.
In February 2023, I both performed in and wrote for Finger Lakes Photo/Plays at the Smith Opera House in Geneva, NY! The event served as the premiere of my new play PICTURE PERFECT, shown on the right above. I performed in THE ARRANGEMENT by David Burton, on the left above. Photos by Gary Ventura.
My play PARTY TALK is now streaming on the podcast STANDBY FOR PLACES, available on Google Podcasts and Apple Podcasts! “Marie and Dave have an intimate conversation as a friend’s party begins to wind down. The boundaries are set as we listen in to these two navigating their way through primal desires and intellectual fortitude.”
In May of 2022, I played Harriet Elmendorf Gould in the historical immersive experience SWEPT CLEAN, written by Krysta Dennis. The play took place in the rooms of Historic Cherry Hill in Albany. NY and told the tragic, but ultimately hopeful story of the family that lived there in the 1800s. Check out Historic Cherry Hill’s website HERE.
In February 2021, I wrote the six-minute play OPERATION BLACK FLY in about four hours for Art in the Public Eye’s 2021 Virtual Play Festival to benefit the Charles R. Wood Theater in Glens Falls, NY. The play won 2nd Place for Best Overall Play, and actor Lauren Whiting tied for 2nd Place for Best Actor. I’m very proud of the work my awesome team did! Check out the YouTube video of the play on my Videos page under Media, and follow APE on Facebook HERE.
Early recovery from addiction is a delicate balancing act, and social events become a minefield. At a friend’s birthday party, recovering alcoholic Marcy finds herself locked in battle with the alluring Voca, the manifestation of both alcohol and her yearning for it. Will today be the day?
My play Not Even One played in Confetti Fest 16 online from December 3 – 13, 2020. We received the following Roving Adjudicator Merit Awards from TANYS (Theatre Association of New York State): Meritorious Achievement in Playwriting, Excellence in Direction by Linda Shirey, Excellence in Ensemble Acting by the Cast, Meritorious Achievement in Lighting by Nick Nealon and Linda Shirey, and Meritorious Achievement in Costuming by the Cast. It was an amazing premiere I’ll never forget!
Roman Jaquez‘s film The Way Forward won Best US Drama at the World Film Fair in Los Angeles in 2020, and I was nominated for Best Supporting Actress at the International Film Festival in Milan, Italy! We ended up taking home Best Cinematography in Italy as well, and my friend Yury Tsykun took home Best Supporting Actor at the Festival in London.
In July 2019, I appeared as astronomer Henrietta Leavitt in a full production of Silent Sky with the Schenectady Civic Players. It was a life-changing experience with an amazing cast, stage manager and director. “There’s a reason we measure it all in light.” Click HERE for more information about the Schenectady Civic Players.
In February 2019, I presented my combined academic/dramatic research on German female sexuality during and after WWII at the Capital District Feminist Studies Conference at Skidmore College (pictured). I graduated from UAlbany with a Master of Arts degree in Public History in May 2019.
Lydia Nightingale 