Esther Cardoso is a

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

n film and theater actress, producer, director and educator.

Biography

Cardoso was a professor of literature at Central University of Las Villas. In 1977, she went to the

Instituto Superior de Arte The University of Arts of Cuba / Instituto Superior de Arte (ISA) was established on 1 September 1976, by the Cuban government as a school for the arts. Its original structure had three schools: Music, Visual Arts, and Performing Arts. History T ...

. She holds a

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' licentia docendi'' ("licence to teach ...

in Stage Arts. Cardoso was a co-founder of two of Cuba's leading theater companies, Teatro Buendia and Argos Teatro. She has taught at the Instituto Superior de Arte and has given numerous workshops in Cuba,

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. As a director, she has staged important shows, fusing genres and making used of diverse artistic strands. In 1997, she co-founded

Gaia In Greek mythology, Gaia (; , a poetic form of ('), meaning 'land' or 'earth'),, , . also spelled Gaea (), is the personification of Earth. Gaia is the ancestral mother—sometimes parthenogenic—of all life. She is the mother of Uranus (S ...

, an arts center in

Old Havana Old Havana () is the city-center (downtown) and one of the 15 municipalities (or boroughs) forming Havana, Cuba. It has the second highest population density in the city and contains the core of the original city of Havana. The positions of the ...

, dedicated to promoting creativity in

theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The performers may communi ...

visual arts The visual arts are art forms such as painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics (art), ceramics, photography, video, image, filmmaking, design, crafts, and architecture. Many artistic disciplines such as performing arts, conceptual a ...

filmmaking Filmmaking or film production is the process by which a Film, motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, beginning with an initial story, idea, or commission. Production then continues through screen ...

and

music Music is the arrangement of sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm, or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Music is generally agreed to be a cultural universal that is present in all hum ...

. The center, which also uses performance to further social and educational ends, officially opened on January 1, 2000. To commemorate Gaia's opening, on the eve of the

millennium A millennium () is a period of one thousand years, one hundred decades, or ten centuries, sometimes called a kiloannum (ka), or kiloyear (ky). Normally, the word is used specifically for periods of a thousand years that begin at the starting ...

, she co-directed ''A Millennium Night's Dream'', a fourteen-hour show involving 84 actors, inspired by the mythical conflict between

Dionysus In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, myth, Dionysus (; ) is the god of wine-making, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, festivity, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstasy, and theatre. He was also known as Bacchus ( or ; ...

(god of pleasure) and

Pentheus In Greek mythology, Pentheus (; ) was a king of Ancient Thebes (Boeotia), Thebes. His father was Echion, the wisest of the Spartoi. His mother was Agave (Theban princess), Agave, the daughter of Cadmus, the founder of Thebes, and grandson of the ...

(lord of reason) involving promenade performances,

fire-eating Fire eating is the act of putting a flaming object into the mouth and extinguishing it. A fire eater can be an entertainer, a street performer, part of a sideshow or a circus act but has also been part of spiritual tradition in India. Physic ...

acrobatics Acrobatics () is the performance of human feats of balance (ability), balance, agility, and motor coordination. Acrobatic skills are used in performing arts, sports, sporting events, and martial arts. Extensive use of acrobatic skills are most ...

, dance, poetry, and Cuban story-telling. In 2005, Cardoso directed and produced, 'Las cenizas de Ruth', a radical reinterpretation of the biblical story of

Ruth Ruth (or its variants) may refer to: Places France * Château de Ruthie, castle in the commune of Aussurucq in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques département of France Switzerland * Ruth, a hamlet in Cologny United States * Ruth, Alabama * Ruth, Ark ...

. In 2006, she starred in the movies 'Gozar Comer y Partir', and 'La Edad de la Peseta', The following year, she took the leading role in 'La Piel de Elisa,' the Cuban premiere of a play by

Carole Frechette Carole is a feminine given name (see Carl for more information) and occasionally a surname. Carole may refer to: Given name * Carole Achache (1952–2016), French writer, photographer and actress * Carole B. Balin (born 1964), American Reform ra ...

. She currently runs a permanent research workshop on the art of the actor, based at Gaia.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cardoso, Esther Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Actresses from Havana Cuban film actresses Cuban stage actresses Instituto Superior de Arte alumni Academic staff of the Instituto Superior de Arte