Asseneh Rodriguez

Born in Sagua la Grande, on the north coast of the current province of Villa Clara, at 12 years of age, already in La Habana, she made her debut in a children's program on the station Mil Diez, of the Partido Socialista Popular.

Parallel to her studies in teacher training at the Escuela Normal, she continued performing on various radio stations. Her strong vocation for acting led her to join in 1958 the group Prometeo, one of the strongholds of art theater of that era.

The revolutionary triumph of 1959 allowed Asenneh to develop her potential. In the sixties she was a key presence in the Cuban theatrical movement and began to venture into cinema and systematize her work on the small screen.

In theater she made her mark when she became the revelation of the staging of Romeo and Juliet, directed by Czech director Otomar Krejcha. She was part of the cast of the Teatro Musical de La Habana, the Conjunto Dramático nacional and later the group Buscón.

Recipient of the National TV Award for lifetime achievement, in that medium Asseneh developed an intense career in telenovelas, teletheaters and variety programs.

Her lasting mark can be found in cinema, with memorable performances in the films Un día en el solar, Patakín, María Antonia, Retrato de Teresa, Guantanamera and Las profecías de Amanda.

She will also be remembered for the passion with which she spread, alongside her dear colleague Alden Knight, the poetic work of Nicolás Guillén.

She was an actress who nourished herself from the popular, the vernacular, the everyday life of Cubans, from whose sensitivity, grace and even problems she knew how to draw sustenance to make faithful portraits of their daily lives.
Asseneh Rodríguez was undoubtedly a very charismatic person, who in every pore of her skin felt the pride of being Cuban and an actress.

She was awarded the order Por la Cultura Nacional