Daysi Granados:
The Face of Cuban Cinema

This revered actress recalls her visit to Montreal in 1967 during a tour with a musical review. She would never have imagined that so many years later and in the very same city she would be awarded the Grand Prix Special des Amériques for her work in Cuban cinema.

She is one of the few actresses who, at the age of 64, has not undergone plastic surgery. She says she is afraid of operations but deep inside she must think she does not need it. She still has a beautiful and enigmatic face - one of those faces that you don't know why it is beautiful. It may be the eyes or the whole ensemble of features.

Daysi shows some grace when needed but she is a Cuban in the full sense of the word when among her closest friends. To Cuba, she is Daysi Granados, the actress of Teresa, and to aficionados she is the Face of Cuban Cinema.

And from this year on she may add another prize to her long list of awards and recognitions: the National Movie Award 2007. She is currently starring in Gabriel García Márquez's Love's Diatribe Against a Seated Man, a play she hopes to present in US universities.

Are you returning to theatre because you like it or because there is less work in movies for actresses your age?

- Apart from liking it, theatre is a fundamental school no matter how many years of experience you might have. It is hard but it gives you the chance to experiment, test your voice, your body. I return to it every two or three years so as to stay in touch with the audience and it is better than movies to keep myself in shape