Background
She is the daughter of teachers Paul and Anne Marie Manzel.
She is the daughter of teachers Paul and Anne Marie Manzel.
After high school she studied at the Academy of Dramatic Arts "Ernst Busch" Berlin. She graduated in 1980 and in 1983 debuted at the Deutsches Theater in Berlin, which became her artistic home.
She has appeared in more than 50 films and television shows since 1983. She starred in the 1986 film So Many Dreams, which was entered into the 37th Berlin International Film Festival. From 1983 to 2001 she was a resident actor there, working with directors such as Thomas Langhoff, Heiner Müller, and Thomas Schulte-Michels.
In addition to her acting work, she also appeared in several musical theater productions.
In 2002, she had the title role in Thomas Schulte-Michels staging of Jacques Offenbach"s operetta Louisiana Grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein at the Deutsches Theater Berlin and also played the lead role in his production of Offenbach"s operetta Louisiana Périchole 2008 at the Berliner Ensemble. In autumn 2004, Dagmar Manzel played at the Komische Oper Berlin, the female lead in the much-vaunted German premiere of Stephen Sondheim"s musical Sweeney Todd, directed by Christopher Bond.
In 2012, she was on the stage of the Komische Oper Berlin with Seven Songs/The Seven Deadly Sins. Her daughter Klara Manzel is also an actress.
Akademie der Künste Berlin]
Since 1994 she has been a member of the Academy of Arts in Berlin.