Thelma Biral
Encyclopedia
Thelma Biral is an Argentine actress prominent in cinema, television and theatre.
to Otello and Sira Biral, recently-arrived Italian immigrants
from the Veneto
Region. The family relocated to Montevideo
, Uruguay
, in 1945, and Biral later enrolled at the Italian Lyceum, a prestigious secondary school. A precocious actress, Biral began directing school plays at age 12 and, following the attendance of one of these by Orestes Caviglia
, the veteran theatre director recommended her to the National Dramatic Arts School.
Graduating at only 14 years of age, Biral applied for admission into the National Comedy of Uruguay. The institution's director, Margarita Xirgu
, allowed the young talent to claim she was 18 - the prerequisite for admission. There, she met Oscar Pedemonte, and the couple married in 1963. That year, Xirgu recommended her young protégé to Buenos Aires' important San Martín Theatre
, at the time mounting a televised production of Federico García Lorca
's Yerma
. Hired as an understudy to Spanish actress María Casares
, her performance opened doors for her in Argentine television. She was cast in 1964 for a leading role in a Soap opera
, El amor tiene cara de mujer (Love Has a Woman's Face), and following numerous other appearances in the genre, she was given her first film role in Julio Saraceni
's 1967 romantic comedy
Villa cariño (Love Town).
Biral continued to perform in the theatre, remaining prominent on the stage as a comic actress. Among her numerous stage performances after becoming a household name on television was opposite veteran comic Niní Marshall
in Roberto Romero's Coqueluche (1972). That year, Biral had her only child, Bruno Pedemonti (who became a noted actor in his own right). She was cast by noted period piece
director Leopoldo Torre Nilsson
for two thrillers: La maffia (1972) and Los siete locos (Seven Madmen), the following year. The latter role earned Biral a Journalists' Association Award for Best Dramatic Actress. She returned to soaps in 1976 for Alberto Migré
's Dos a quererse (Two for Love) and in 1980, accepted perhaps her most memorable role as an alcoholic in Fernando Ayala
's Desde el abismo (From the Abyss). This (her second collaboration with Ayala) earned her a second Journalists' Association Award.
She starred opposite Héctor Alterio in Héctor Olivera
's Los Viernes de la eternidad (Fridays in Eternity), in 1981. She was given a Press Prize for the role; but, for years afterwards, she limited her performances to the theatre, where she earned plaudits for protagonizing James Sparks' Sparks, Bernard Slade
's Soufflé and, from 1991 to 1996, Sebastián Moncada's Brujas (Witches). She accepted a role in a 1994 edition of her first soap opera, "Love Has a Woman's Face," and in 1997, portrayed a struggling artist's estranged mother in Fernando Díaz
's Plaza de almas
.
Biral led a local 1997 production of Michael Christopher's play, The Lady and the Clarinet, and more recently, Werner Schwab
's The Presidents and Athol Fugard
's The Road to Mecca
, among numerous other plays and television appearances.
Life and work
Thelma Biral was born in Buenos AiresBuenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
to Otello and Sira Biral, recently-arrived Italian immigrants
Italian Argentine
An Italian Argentine is a person born in Argentina of Italian ancestry. It is estimated up to 25 million Argentines have some degree of Italian descent...
from the Veneto
Veneto
Veneto is one of the 20 regions of Italy. Its population is about 5 million, ranking 5th in Italy.Veneto had been for more than a millennium an independent state, the Republic of Venice, until it was eventually annexed by Italy in 1866 after brief Austrian and French rule...
Region. The family relocated to Montevideo
Montevideo
Montevideo is the largest city, the capital, and the chief port of Uruguay. The settlement was established in 1726 by Bruno Mauricio de Zabala, as a strategic move amidst a Spanish-Portuguese dispute over the platine region, and as a counter to the Portuguese colony at Colonia del Sacramento...
, Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
, in 1945, and Biral later enrolled at the Italian Lyceum, a prestigious secondary school. A precocious actress, Biral began directing school plays at age 12 and, following the attendance of one of these by Orestes Caviglia
Orestes Caviglia
Orestes Caviglia was an Argentine film actor and film director of the classic era of the Cinema of Argentina....
, the veteran theatre director recommended her to the National Dramatic Arts School.
Graduating at only 14 years of age, Biral applied for admission into the National Comedy of Uruguay. The institution's director, Margarita Xirgu
Margarita Xirgu
Margarita Xirgu, also Margarida Xirgu was a Catalan stage actress, who was greatly popular throughout her country and Latin America. A friend of the poet Federico García Lorca, she was forced into exile during Francisco Franco's dictatorship of Spain, but continued her work in America...
, allowed the young talent to claim she was 18 - the prerequisite for admission. There, she met Oscar Pedemonte, and the couple married in 1963. That year, Xirgu recommended her young protégé to Buenos Aires' important San Martín Theatre
Centro Cultural General San Martín
The General San Martín Cultural Centre is a cultural centre located in Buenos Aires, Argentina near the major thoroughfare Corrientes Avenue.It is run by the city government, and hosts diverse cultural and artistic events...
, at the time mounting a televised production of Federico García Lorca
Federico García Lorca
Federico del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús García Lorca was a Spanish poet, dramatist and theatre director. García Lorca achieved international recognition as an emblematic member of the Generation of '27. He is believed to be one of thousands who were summarily shot by anti-communist death squads...
's Yerma
Yerma
Yerma is a play by the Spanish dramatist Federico García Lorca. It was written in 1934, and first performed that same year. Lorca describes the play as "a tragic poem."-Plot:...
. Hired as an understudy to Spanish actress María Casares
María Casares
María Casares was a Spanish actress and one of the most distinguished stars of the French stage. She was usually credited in France as Maria Casarès.-Early life:...
, her performance opened doors for her in Argentine television. She was cast in 1964 for a leading role in a Soap opera
Telenovela
A telenovela is a limited-run serial dramatic programming popular in Latin American, Portuguese, and Spanish television programming. The word combines tele, short for televisión or televisão , and novela, a Spanish or Portuguese word for "novel"...
, El amor tiene cara de mujer (Love Has a Woman's Face), and following numerous other appearances in the genre, she was given her first film role in Julio Saraceni
Julio Saraceni
Julio Saraceni was a prolific Argentine film director whose career in the Cinema of Argentina as a movie director spanned six decades....
's 1967 romantic comedy
Romantic Comedy
Romantic Comedy can refer to* Romantic Comedy , a 1979 play written by Bernard Slade* Romantic Comedy , a 1983 film adapted from the play and starring Dudley Moore and Mary Steenburgen...
Villa cariño (Love Town).
Biral continued to perform in the theatre, remaining prominent on the stage as a comic actress. Among her numerous stage performances after becoming a household name on television was opposite veteran comic Niní Marshall
Niní Marshall
Niní Marshall was a popular Argentine comedienne and actress.-Life and work:She was born Marina Esther Traveso in Buenos Aires to Pedro and María Ángela Traveso, a well-to-do family in Rosario, in 1903...
in Roberto Romero's Coqueluche (1972). That year, Biral had her only child, Bruno Pedemonti (who became a noted actor in his own right). She was cast by noted period piece
Period piece
-Setting:In the performing arts, a period piece is a work set in a particular era. This informal term covers all countries, all periods and all genres...
director Leopoldo Torre Nilsson
Leopoldo Torre Nilsson
Leopoldo Torre Nilsson , also known as Leo Towers and as Babsy, was an Argentine film director, producer and screenwriter....
for two thrillers: La maffia (1972) and Los siete locos (Seven Madmen), the following year. The latter role earned Biral a Journalists' Association Award for Best Dramatic Actress. She returned to soaps in 1976 for Alberto Migré
Alberto Migré
Alberto Migré, pseudonime of "Felipe Alberto Milletari Miagro" was an Argentine TV screenwriter and producer, specialized on telenovelas.-Family Background:...
's Dos a quererse (Two for Love) and in 1980, accepted perhaps her most memorable role as an alcoholic in Fernando Ayala
Fernando Ayala
Fernando Ayala was an Argentine film producer, film director, screenwriter and film producer of the classic era...
's Desde el abismo (From the Abyss). This (her second collaboration with Ayala) earned her a second Journalists' Association Award.
She starred opposite Héctor Alterio in Héctor Olivera
Héctor Olivera
Héctor Olivera is a film director, producer and screenwriter.He works mainly in the cinema of Argentina, but has contributed to numerous films in the United States.-Biography:...
's Los Viernes de la eternidad (Fridays in Eternity), in 1981. She was given a Press Prize for the role; but, for years afterwards, she limited her performances to the theatre, where she earned plaudits for protagonizing James Sparks' Sparks, Bernard Slade
Bernard Slade
Bernard Slade is a Canadian playwright and screenwriter.Born in St. Catharines, Ontario, Slade began his career as an actor with the Garden Center Theatre in Vineland, Ontario. In the mid-1960s, he relocated to Hollywood and began to work as a writer for television sitcoms, including Bewitched...
's Soufflé and, from 1991 to 1996, Sebastián Moncada's Brujas (Witches). She accepted a role in a 1994 edition of her first soap opera, "Love Has a Woman's Face," and in 1997, portrayed a struggling artist's estranged mother in Fernando Díaz
Fernando Díaz
Fernando Díaz was a Spanish nobleman and military leader in the Kingdom of León, the most powerful Asturian magnate of the period. He held the highest rank in the kingdom, that of count , from at least 24 September 1089...
's Plaza de almas
Plaza de Almas
Plaza de almas is an Argentine drama film, written directed by Fernando Díaz.The picture was produced by Daniel Burman, Fernando Díaz, and Diego Dubcovsky.It stars Olga Zubarry, Norman Briski, Vera Fogwill, and others.-Plot:...
.
Biral led a local 1997 production of Michael Christopher's play, The Lady and the Clarinet, and more recently, Werner Schwab
Werner Schwab
Werner Schwab was an Austrian playwright and visual artist.From 1978 to 1982 he studied sculpture at the Akademie der bildenden Künste in Vienna. During the 1980s he worked as a sculptor and woodcutter....
's The Presidents and Athol Fugard
Athol Fugard
Athol Fugard is a South African playwright, novelist, actor, and director who writes in English, best known for his political plays opposing the South African system of apartheid and for the 2005 Academy-Award winning film of his novel Tsotsi, directed by Gavin Hood...
's The Road to Mecca
The Road to Mecca
The Road to Mecca is a play by South Africa's Athol Fugard.It was inspired by the story of Helen Martins who lived in Nieu-Bethesda, Eastern Cape, South Africa and created The Owl House, now a national monument....
, among numerous other plays and television appearances.