-Born in 1967 the 28th of July in Santiago de Cuba.
-Graduated in the Instituto Superior de Arte in 1990 (La Habana, Cuba) specialized in Acting.
-She has received courses of traditional dance, piano, French, and Clown technique in the Escuela Internacional de Teatro Latinoamericano.
-She started her professional activity in 1990 under the company “Teatro Caribeño” of Cuba, where she remained until May 2011.
-At the moment, she´s the Director of the Project: “Mujeres, Fuente de Creación” (“Women, Creative Source”).
Theatre
1993 – Leading role in the play for children and youth “Patakin de una MuñecaNegra” (“Patakin of a Black Doll”)
1995 – One-woman show “Sueños de una Muñeca Negra” (“Dreams of a Black Doll”)
1997 – One-woman show “Eleggua y Las tres Reinas” (“Eleggua and the Three Queens”)
2001 – Premiere of the monologue “Emelina Cundiamor” in Spanish.
2002 – Premiere of the monologue “Emelina Cundiamor” in French.
2003 – Rerun of “Emelina Cundiamor” in different provinces of Cuba and Mozambique.
2004 – One of the leading roles in the premiere of “Quiquiribu Mandinga”.
– “Emelina Cundiamor” in Argentina.
2005 – Premiere of the monologue “La Lupe“.
– Premiere of “Quién engaña a quién” (“Who deceives who”).
– Rerun of “Emelina Cundiamor“.
2007 – Premiere of “Los Peces en la red” (“The Fishes in the net”) in City Hall Theatre.
– Rerun of “Emelina Cundiamor” in Santiago de Cuba.
– Rerun of “Quién engaña a quién“.
– Rerun of “Los Peces en la red” in the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes of Cuba.
2010 – Habana International Festival with the monologue “Emelina Cundiamor“.
2011 – Leading role in the premiere of the classical play “Maria Antonia“, written and directed by Eugenio Hernandez Espinosa.
2012 – Habana International Festival with the play “Maria Antonia” as special guest of the “Grupo Teatro Caribeño”.
– Creation of self-led company “Mujeres, Fuente de Creación”.
– Presentation of the one-woman show “Coger la vida con espinas” (“Grab the life with spines”), which acts as a retrospective of 22 years of job and is self-directed. Special participation of the actress Hilda Oates.
2013 – Premiere of the play “Las lágrimas no hacen ruido al caer” (“Tears make no noise when they fall”) by Alberto Pedro Torriente. Artistic Direction byActor Miguel Abreu. General Direction by Monse Duany.
2014 – Theatre Festival in Camaguey with “Las lágrimas no hacen ruido al caer“.
2015 – Premiere of the show “Vaginas” Artistic Direction and Adaptation by Osvaldo Doimeadios from “Los monólogos de las vaginas” (“The monologues of the vaginas”) by Eve Ensler. With participation of the actresses Linet Hernandezy Yordanka Airosa. General Direction by Monse Duany.
2018 – Premiere of the one-woman show “Muñeca rota” (“Broken doll”). Adaptation, OST, lights, video and Artistic Direction by Pablo Guevara. General Direction by Monse Duany.
2022 – “La casa de Bernarda Alba” (“The House of Bernarda Alba”) with the company “Teatro Clau”. Directed by Carlos Aguiar.
2024 – Participation in the Afro-Cuban Legacie Conference with the monologue “Emelina Cundiamor” by Eugenio Hernadez Espinosa.
– Festival Cap Excellence in Guadeloupe with the monologue
“Emelina Cundiamor”.
Cinema & Television
1990 – “Adorables Mentiras” (“Adorable lies”) Film ICAIC
1997 – “Nelvis y los Dioses” (“Nelvis and the Gods”) Coproduction Cuban-Danish, produced by Saga Video Og Kortfilm, Prisme Film.
1998 – “Café con leche” (“Coffee with milk”) series produced by TVE.
1999 – “Las raíces de mi corazón” (“The roots of my heart”), medium-length film byGloria Rolando.
2002 – “Violetas de Agua” (“Water Violets”), series produced by TVC.
2003 – “Le Comissaire Maigret” (“Depute Maigret”), produced by TVF.
2004 – “Jura Decir la Verdad” (“Do you swear to tell the truth”), comedy show produced by TVC.
2005 – “Lo que me queda por vivir” (“Whatever life I have left”), soap opera produced by TVC
2006 – “La Cara Oculta de la Luna” (“The Hidden Face of the Moon”), produced byTVC.
2007 – “Eine Liebe in Kuba“, coproduction Germany-Cuba.
– “Oceano” (“Ocean”), coproduction Cuba-Rusia.
2008 – “Reinará La serpiente” (“The serpent will reign”), teleplay produced by TVC
2010 -“Añorado Encuentro” (“Yearning I find”), produced by TVC
2011 -“Irremediablemente Juntos” (“Hopelessly together”) produced by the ICAIC (Institute of Cuban Cinema).
2012 – “Tras las Huellas” (“After the tracks”), produced by TVC.
– “Contra el silencio” (“Against the silence”), police drama produced by TVC
2018 – “Reinará la Serpiente”.
2018 – “Habana me matas” (“Habana, you kill me”), short movie, Spanish coproduction.
2019 – “Tras las Huellas“.
2020 – “Tras las huellas“.
International Tours
1994 – Member of the Cultural Delegation participating in the NGO Forumcelebrated in Barbados.
1995 – Festival “Women Sources of Creation” in Arhus, Denmark (Play:”Sueños de una Muñeca Negra” by de Maité Vera).
1996 – Festival “Images of Afrika” in Copenhague, Denmark (Play: “Sueños de una Muñeca Negra”).
– Presentation: “La muñeca negra” (“The black doll”) by Maite Vera inGeneva, Suiza.
1997 – Presentation in the Spanish theatre showcase organized by the prestigious company “Odin Theatre” in Holstebro, Denmark. (Play: “Elegguay las tres Reinas” by Maité Vera).
– Participation in the “Festival de Culturas Caribeñas” (“Festival of Caribbean Cultures”) celebrated in the towns of Basel, Genève & Suiza.
– Presentation: “Eleggua y Las tres Reinas” in Bochum.
1998 – Invited by the International Company “Terra Nova” to present the one-woman show “Eleggua y las tres Reinas” in Copenhague, Denmark.
– Series “Café con leche” with TVE. Produced by José Frade and directed byMiguel Hermoso in Madrid, Spain.
2003 – Invited by the “Centro Cultural Franco-Mozambicano” to do acting workshops for young Mozambican actors and presenting the monologue”Emelina Cundiamor” in Maputo, Mozambique.
2004 – Festival “Otoño Azul” (“Blue Autumn”) in the province of Buenos Aires,Argentina. Monologue: “Emelina Cundiamor“
2006 – Monologues Festival “Ni tan solos” in Peru. Play: “La Lupe” by Roberto PerezLeon.
– Festival in Campeche, Mexico. Play: “La Lupe“, directed by Barbara Rivero.
2007 – “I Festival Ibero-Americano de Teatro de São Paulo” in the “Memorial deAmérica Latina”, Brazil. Play: “La Lupe“
2010 – Theatre Festival in Adana, Turkey. Play: “La Lupe“.
2015 – Festival in Ecuador. Play: “Las lágrimas no hacen ruido al caer“.
2018 – “Festival Thespis monodrama” in Kiel, Alemania Play: “Las lagrimas no hacen ruido al caer“.
2019 – International Festival of solo-performances “VISAGINAS” 2019 in Lithuania.
Awards
2003 – Female Acting Award in the 11th Festival of Small Format plays “Mejunje” inVilla Clara, Cuba. Play: “Emelina Cundiamor“.
– Female acting Award in the 1st Monologue Festival and Terry Award in Cienfuegos. Play: “Emelina Cundiamor“
– Collateral Award to the best creator given by the AHS and Acting Awardgiven by the Center of Communitarian Help. Play: “Emelina Cundiamor“
2004 – Female Acting Award and Popularity Award in the festival “Otoño Azul” in the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Play: “Emelina Cundiamor“
2005 – Female Acting Award in the 2nd Monologue Festival and Terry Award, in Cienfuegos. Play: “La Lupe“.
Press releases
THE NEW EUGENIO HERNÁNDEZ´S EMELINA
By Waldo González López (18th November 2002)
·Especial for Granma Internacional
Monse Duany´s excellent performance is another of the relevant points of this new Emelina…; the actress evidences an astounding organicity that allows her to act, sing, dance and engage with new angles the play, all at the same time. Regarding this valuable actress innovations, she manages new fans for the well-liked scenic manifestation of the Island, while scoring another goal in favor of the prestigious Cuban dramaturg and artistic director.
Because of all this, she´s now back, with another play by the same author, in this solo-performance that strongly reaffirms her quality. This is how Eugenio Hernández Espinosa, like in a dramaturgic spiral, continues to harvest each year new and bigger laurels, thanks to his rigor and talent that made of him, decades ago, one of the most important living theatre writers.
RETURNING SOBRIETY
By Amado del Pino (18th November 2002)
… In the line of the monologue there´s another outstanding return: Emelina Cundiamor, written and directed by Eugenio Hernández Espinosa. This essential dramaturg is one of our artists that tackled the genre with more fervor and efficacy. Emelina… premiered in 1987…
… Now, Monse Duany has made a more actual and dynamic image of this anthem to all things Cuban, to this subtle critic to the unauthentic, while not renouncing to the text or the spirit of the script. And example of how to coherently update to the times is how Eugenio put rap to a part of the text that in the 80s was simply said. Monse enters and comes out of the tragedy of the character and makes us laugh and cry, almost at the same time…
CARIBBEAN THEATRE OF CUBA
Monse Duany came from Cuba well into the night of last Thursday, when the first theatre groups presentations happened in the House-Museum López Claro, where she displayed her particular and sincere charism and sympathy. And when she went on stage the night of the Friday, those values, added to the thespian quality and the impeccable staging of her solo-show, were endorsed in what resulted in a true gift to the audience…
… And the author of the play, Eugenio Hernández Espinosa, by showing this situation, raises to the stage another topic that becomes universal: identity and its loss in favor of values that promise to distinguish and raise the class in a race as short as senseless.
But all of this remains in the viewer after assisting to a performance in which the versatility of Monse Duany is everywhere: creating climates of comedy and anguish, joy and disenchantment, comprehension and impotence. She sings, dances, recites, dreams, imagines, screams, cries, falls in love, gets passionate, suffers and transpires (yes… she literally sweats on stage), in order to portray values that are so human that strip the universal vulnerability of every mortal. Accompanied just by a bucket and a mop, Duany won the heart of the public, who voted her as the Best Spectacle, and the jury´s too, who recognized her as the Best Actress in that Vth “OtoñoAzul” in Argentina.
THE WORK OF CULTURE
By Ricardo Berdiñas, Argentina.
Monse Duany is a Cuban actress who arrives to our town of Azul with the expectations of someone who doesn´t know the terrain they´re walking on. For Monse, nothing is easy in life and his artistic vein proves that…
… Monse Duany was the most thorough example of an Encounter that was, without any doubt, the biggest of all in town. She stopped monotony and speculations, ended businesses and filled the spirits with art. Of course, to understand that we had to watch many talented people that came to “OtoñoAzul”, but also we had to watch the performance of Monse Duany, Cuban actress.
(When we were finishing writing this note, we found out that Monse Duany had been elected as the best actress of “Otoño Azul”, which corroborate that we went looking for sardines and fished a shark.)
LA LUPE SEEING FROM HER AUTHENTIC MUSICALITY
By Roberto Viña.
Music has been a kind of instrument, source, idoneous essence for the creation of theatre plays. Cuba, because of being an eminently musical country, has nurtured of the colorful array of figures of this artistic genre in order to polemize not only with its past, present and future, but to present with this perfect ingredient the topics of our reality, even the most controversial.
Through Cuban theatres we´ve seen plays that, far away from exalting the greatness of this or that singer, have placed the person to question their time, exposing their way of living and conversing with their “illusions and traumas”, which could very well be their demons. Beyond the intention to rescue ghosts, Cuban writers have embraced the idea of humanize them, immortalizing them from the simplicity of who they were as a person.
That´s the case of the performance directed by Bárbara Rivero about that Cuban singer that was La Lupe, placing the play in a time that, despite its apparent ambiguity, doesn´t come as illusory, but rather the contrary, since its atemporality achieves in an efficient manner to expose that constant and almost obsessive desire that you can breath throughout the whole piece: the nostalgy for La Habana, for the homeland, for each one´s own identity.
“La Lupe is woman, singer and Cuban”, as actress Monse Duany says, defending the character with the strength of these qualities. La Lupe is Monse Duany.
As the play advances the characters metamorphoses into the actress and pollutes her; while the actress sings in her own voice the songs that raised this woman to stardom and puts in them, in a somehow involuntary way, her own label, that particular way that each actor has to take on a character.
From the exile to the “inile” is how this play progresses, from memory to nostalgia; from New York to La Habana and from La Habana to Santiago, to a childhood wrapped in that veil in which ghosts are often found. From the solitude of an apartment to the hustle of a cabaret, or to the silence of a game.
La Lupe seems to face us with her sadness through songs, but also her impending necessity to avoid feeling excluded, fallen apart, forgotten from the musical people of La Habana. From the feeling of absence is how she sings that unique way to see her music – and, above all, feel it -, like a kind of net that interweaves with her body, a net that serves to this play as scenography and that not only seals the anguish of the character within itself, but also alludes to the name of the night club where this singer started her musical carrier, and from where she left towards the world in 1962.
La Lupe-Duany intends to bid farewell from her prison-net in the last instant of her life, and like every self-respecting play of this genre, from a last song: “What I asked you?” But she doesn´t manage to let go, since further from forgetting about her we become apprehended of that lucid madness that´s ever-present in the monologue. Let´s go search for her songs again, and maybe we´ll be able to understand – who says otherwise?! – that authentic musicality of her.