The Cuban actress Paula Alí passed away this Monday at the age of 90, as confirmed by the Unión de Escritores y Artistas de Cuba (UNEAC) on their Facebook account, which described her as «one of the most popular and beloved artists among the Cuban people».
Born on January 26, 1936 in Candelaria, in the current province of Artemisa, Paula Andrea Alí Rivera built a career spanning more than six decades, covering television, film, and theater, becoming a familiar face for several generations of Cubans.
His career began in 1959 as a model and extra in television, and over time it expanded to virtually every possible stage. In 1970, he joined the prestigious group Teatro Estudio, with which he maintained a connection until the end of his life, and he also worked with the company El Público, where he starred in La Celestina, directed by Carlos Díaz.
In cinema, her filmography at ICAIC exceeded 30 films, including Lista de espera (2000), El cuerno de la abundancia (2008), and Cartas del Parque. For Nada, directed by Juan Carlos Cremata, she won the Best Actress Award at the Cartagena de Indias Festival in Colombia in 2003.
On television, she was an indispensable face in telenovelas such as In Love with the Sea (1989), The Orphans of the Obrapía (1999), and The Children of Pandora (2022), and she was particularly cherished for her role as Dr. Rosa Matriz in the comedy show "Punto G."
UNEAC highlighted that, despite her "broad dramatic spectrum," Paula Alí left "an especially endearing mark in comedy, a genre to which she contributed professionalism, naturalness, and charisma that set her apart in the national artistic landscape."
Only three weeks before her death, the 2026 National Television Prize —the highest honor in Cuban television— was awarded to her unanimously, adding to a long list of accolades that includes the UNEAC Award for Best Female Performance, the Segismundo Awards, and the Special Master of Generations Award.
In August 2024, she was urgently hospitalized at the Cardiology Institute in Havana, where she made a favorable recovery. In January of this year, she celebrated her 90th birthday with a tribute on the state television program "Al Mediodía."
"With Paula Alí, an essential interpreter of the Cuban scene disappears, whose work will remain in the emotional memory of our people and in the history of the performing and audiovisual arts of the country," concluded the UNEAC in its statement.
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