Interpretation, Dance, and Music are intertwined in Dandara Mariana´s career, an actress who was born in Rio de Janeiro (RJ) in 1988. She is an actor’s daughter (Romeo Evaristo) with an international consultant (Elizabeth Correa Nahas). Since a child, she showed interest in following the artistic career. During her adolescence, Dandara and her friends set up a cover group for the Spice Girls. She was Melanie Brown. Her father encouraged her so much, that he accompanied the group as an illuminator of the presentations. “I’ve always been a spontaneous child. As a child, I loved day-care, differently from the others. Art was the natural way that I followed as a way to go beyond this restless side of me”, she says.

After graduating in school, her taste for decoration and arts stood out. Dandara ended up opting for the architecture course. It didn’t take long and soon Dandara realized she had made the wrong choice. Thanks to her friends Lázaro Ramos and Taís Araújo, she was invited to participate in the program As Aventuras de Parabólico, in the Channel Brazil, directed by the actor. There she was certain of what she wanted performing arts. In 2007 she enrolled in CAL (Casa das Artes de Laranjeiras).  Finally, she felt in the right place.

In her resumé, Dandara has classics such as “Toda Nudez Será Castigada”, by Nelson Rodrigues; “Do Mundo Nada se Leva”, by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart; and “Antígona”, by Sophocles. Music and dance have also come into her life through musicals: “Orfeu da Conceição”, directed by Aderbal Freire Filho; “O Bem do Mar – Dorival Caymmi”, directed by De Bonis; “Garrincha – Uma ópera das ruas”, directed by the brilliant American director Bob Wilson. In September 2018, she played the samba singer Dona Ivone Lara in the musical “Dona Ivone Lara – Um Sorriso Negro”.

In the movies, Dandara was part in the cast of the films “Aparecida – O Milagre”, “O Concurso”, “Um Candidato Honesto”, “Através das Sombras”, “Dona Flor e Seus Dois Maridos”, “Intervenção”, and the short film “O Casaco”, a work that toured festivals around the world and for which the actress won the best actress award at the 42nd Guarnicê Film Festival, in São Luís / MA.

In 2012, she made her debut on TV Globo playing the young Tamires in “Malhação”, and at the same network she went on to make some special participations, such as in the series “Na Forma da Lei” and in the soap operas “Babilônia” (2015) and “A Regra do Jogo” (2015).  In 2017, she stood out as the character Marilda in “A Força do Querer”, a soap opera that was broadcast in prime time on the network, with great audience success.

In 2019, as one of the main characters in the soap opera “Verão 90”, also on TV Globo, Dandara played a lambada and axé dancer who was romantically involved with the main character. There, Dandara also drew a lot of attention for her dancing skills, and all this helped her gain a lot of popularity. This was also achieved through the show “Dança dos Famosos”, from the same network, where she won the status of the best participant of all the editions. On the road of successes achieved through hard work and talent, other soap operas came along such as “Salve-Se Quem Puder (2020)” and “Travessia” (2023), both from the same network.

In 2022, she debuted in productions on the Streaming platforms. “Não foi Minha Culpa”, from Star+, a series which was told real stories of feminicide and domestic violence, where the actress gave life to Raíssa. This character is extremely important in this series, as long as Raíssa reigns as a great singer through the Carnival blocks. Thanks to this series, there was a follow-up to all the episodes where the character puts in on appearance.

She also stars in the movie “Casamento à Distância”, the first Brazilian romantic comedy with black people at the center of the story on Netflix.  In “Encantado’s”, a series on Globoplay, Dandara plays Pandora, the new employee at the market: graceful, religious, outspoken and naive.

Dandara likes to say that she embraces all kinds of artistic expressions. “Art is part of my life. I am constantly allowing myself, opening up about my feelings, whether singing, dancing, drawing, writing, reading, observing… I am into Art” she says, “I hope my Art can influence in a positive way not only me but also the others”, she adds.

The actress has been developing a beautiful path in her career. She has earned the respect of the artistic community and the audience through her struggle and her hard work. Dandara is a complete artist who has become a reference for many black girls who have seen in her the possibility of being who you are and achieving what you want.

Dandara is a strong and brave woman who pursues her dreams and goes further to achieve them.