Actress, Lyric Soprano, & sketch comedienne Marlene Villafane is a native New Yorker; raised in the Upper West Side of Puerto Rican heritage. She is an alumna of La Guardia Performing Arts High School.
She played Julie in Harold Prince’s Australian production of “Show Boat” opposite “Married With Children’s” Dan Tullis Jr. She also played opposite Melvin Van Peebles’s as his Leading Lady in “Unmitigated Truth” which he also wrote and directed. She portrayed Clara in the Living Arts Asian & European tours of “Porgy and Bess”. She sang the principal role of Lori, a social worker in J.C. Gonzalez’s “Warm” with Tony award winner Karen Olivo, under the direction of Scott Schwartz. Marlene is on rotation in the Off-Broadway “Platanos and Collard Greens” as the Dominican mother in which she also co-starred in this production with Royce Reed of “Basketball Wives”. www.platanosandcollardgreens.com

She co-starred as Billie Holiday in “Celebrity Ghost Stories” starring Katherine Narducci of “A Bronx Tale” for Biography Channel.
She was a member of the Urban Chase Comedy Troupe and in 2011 Marlene was voted the most improved actor of the Urban Chase.
She was a cast member of sketch comedy show “Que le Parece?” on Telemundo Marlene is a proud member of AEA.
Due to her crossover look she has portrayed a variety of roles.

She is the a certified producer/co-host for MNN’s Primetime live show “Are You a Star or Just Bizarre?”;Tuesday nights on Time Warner Channel 56 at 11pm or watch it on www.MNN.org!

Some of her National/ Regional and concert credits;
REGIONAL; Michael Strozier’s “Moctezuma” (High Priestess/PRINCIPAL) and “La Revolucion” (Maria Pistolas/SUPPORTING); Moscow Arts Theatre “Thirties Forever” (SUPPORTING); “Line” 13th St Rep. (Molly).
NATIONAL; Pushcart Players Tour of “Stone Soup and Other Stories”(Multiple) “Peter and the Wolf”(Wolf), and “Red Riding Hood & Other Stories” (Multiple)

Some of her independent, feature film and television credits;
FILM: Ridley Scott’s “American Gangster” (Party Guest); George Cox’s “Street Choice”(SUPPORTING LEAD);Antonio De La Cruz’s “Children of Hip Hop”(SUPPORTING); Scott ; Troy Reed’s “A Man’s Man” w/ Rapper Loon (SUPPORTING);

TELEVISION: NBC’s “Whoopi” (Dancer); NBC’s “Today Show” Wedding Dance Competition (Guest Vocalist); Telemundo’s “Despierta America”(Model); Australia's Nine Network’s Kerri- Anne Kennerley Show (Guest performer “Porgy and Bess”)
Marlene is the Grand Prize Winner of the 2009 IMTA Vocal Competition & the IMTA 2nd Runner Up Winner for Actor of the Year.
She has song all over the NYC area for senior citizen centers with Eva Swan’s Vocal Ease.
My goals are plentiful. One is to work constantly in what I absolutely love & respect doing; to make a great living as singer /actress. I would love to do more musical theatre as well as film & tv & eventually have my own show like Carol Burnett and Tracy Ullman.
In addition, other goals would also be to open a studio for voice & acting to absolute beginners and assist aspiring performers to overcome performance anxieties. I want to give back to the community & people of all ages, help put other minorities to work in performing as well.

Please check out her websites and profiles at www.mvillafane.webs.com, www.imdb.com/name/nm1836951/ and www.modelrun.com/actor/marlenev

She is ever grateful to God, her family, friends and to all of her teachers for their undying support.

Marlene Villafane 917-204-5505
Voice- Legit lyric Soprano
FILM
American Gangster Party Guest R.Scott
Street Choice PRINCIPAL George Cox
Children of Hip Hop SUPPORTING Antonio De la Cruz
Stay Night Pedestrian Marc Forster
Ball of Confusion Heroin Addict/PRINCIPAL Norman C.Linton
5 Hours Karen Norman C. Linton
Hitch Crowd Member Andy Tennant,
Creating Karma SUPPORTING Jill Wisoff
The Day They Came Back PRINCIPAL Scott Goldberg
A Man’s Man (w/Rapper Loon SUPPORTING Troy Reed
Some Kind of Justice SUPPORTING P.C Prods. D.Howard

TELEVISION
Celebrity Ghost Stories BILLIE HOLIDAY Biography Ch.T.Smith
Today Show (Wedding Dance) LEAD VOCALIST NBC
Que le Parece? (Comedy) VARIOUS Telemundo
Say What Karaoke? Audience Member MTV

LIVE/PROMOTION
IMTA Pre-Auditions Spokesperson/Co-host PMTS NYC
Are You a Star or Just Bizarre? Co-Host/Producer Time Warner Ch 56

THEATER
Show Boat (International) JULIE u.s./Ensemble Harold Prince,
Unmitigated Truth LEADING LADY Melvin Van Peebles
Oklahoma!(National) VIVIAN/Ensemble Portland Center Stage
Platanos & Collard Greens PRINCIPAL Between the Lines
Thirties Forever JANE/Ensemble Moscow Art Theater

Specialized Training:
Manhattan School of Music BM & MM(Voice) (Maitland Peters, Hilda Harris, MSM), Gregory Payne

Acting-Nancy Rhodes, Carolyn Marlowe, Dona Vaughn, MSM
Roger Simon Studio, John Pallotta,
Career Breakthrough’s Actor Intensive- Susan Campochiaro-Confrey
Actor’s Connection Primetime Seminar- Marci Phillips

Dance- Broadway Dance Center - Sue Samuels/Jazz, Sydney-Dana Jolly
Musical Theatre- Carolyn Marlowe, Steve Petrillo

Special Skills & Hobbies:Languages- Speaks & Reads fluent Spanish
Accents- High British, Hungarian/Eastern European, Argentinian, Southern, Swedish/Danish, Big Ang (Mob Wife), NuYorican, English, Mousey, Good Eartha Kitt imitator, Hiking, Bicycling, Tao Yoga & Tai Chi, Salsa, Merengue, Karaoke, Bowling, Reads Teleprompter, Basic Improv, Sketch comedy, Vocal characterizations
Production: Behind camera/ control room, willing to travel, Passport ready.

Concerts: Opened for Sheryl Crow w/GDO ( Breast Cancer Waldorf Gala), Lincoln Center; Backup vocals/Coati Mundi (Kid Creole & the Coconuts), Cory Daye (Savannah Band), N’ Dea Davenport (Brand New Heavies);Paul Shaffer of The David Letterman Show,Sydney Rocks Fest (excerpts Ragtime)
Awards: IMTA GRAND PRIZE Vocal Winner 2009
& IMTA 2nd Runner Up Actor of the Year 2009

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