The Spanish stage world and the LGBTIQ+ community are in mourning, because today the Canarian trans actress passed away Elizabeth Torres as a consequence of lung cancer that he had suffered since 2018, but that only in 2020 did he make it known to the public. His family spoke through a statement on the networks where he released the news.
“Today, February 11, 2022, we say goodbye to Isabel. Although her family and friends deeply feel her loss, we know that wherever she goes she will have fun as only she knows how. Thank you for all the shows of affection and concern. She has left feeling very loved and protected”reads in the post.
His leading role in the series Veneno changed his life
Before achieving international fame, Isabel Torres was a radio host for ten years on her program called La Ventolera in the Canary Islands. However, when she was presented with the opportunity to bring to life the adult stage of the mythical her, Veneno, as she was known trans actress Cristina Ortizin her autobiographical series, could not turn it down despite being diagnosed with serious illnesses shortly after receiving her dream role.
“I was going through a disease adjacent to the one that came after me, which was cancer (in stage 4) called pemphigus, which was an autoimmune disease and the only way to cure it was by stuffing myself with corticosteroids at very high doses and in three months I went from 70 kilos, which is what I normally weigh, to 90 kilos, that helped me a lot for the character”, he commented in an interview for El País .
He revealed that he loved the project so much because of the importance they gave to the trans community and therefore he promised himself that he would achieve it “Even if it’s the last thing I do”, as long as they posthumously place “In memory of Isabel Torres” at the end. As a result of the bioseries, the actress began to receive comments from people who were also in the process of accepting their bodies and who longed to make the gender transition.
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“Many people write to me to say ‘Thank you Isabel because I am going through the same thing’ and that gives me the strength to pull this car and added to the children who come to me to tell me that thanks to the series they have realized who want to make the transition and they don’t know how to do it; and I call her parents and they say ‘You’re the one from La Veneno, what do you call me?’ for you to pay attention to your son,” she continued.
Isabel Torres: the advanced state of her illness
The renowned actress who achieved international fame with the series Veneno when it was broadcast on HBO Max, always kept her fans up to date about her critical state of health. In November 2021, she warned about the worsening of her illness when her doctors told her that she only had two months to live.
However, this fact did not stop her daily chores and through her Instagram account where she has more than 100,000 thousand followers, she shared various content in which she looked radiant enjoying various looks, sunbathing by the pool, going out with friends and He showed how he performed his chemo always with a good attitude.
Isabel Torres, an icon of the LGBTIQ+ community
At just 27 years old, in 1996, the actress became the first trans woman in the Canary Islands to have her DNI reflect her true gender identity, thanks to the recognition of the Superior Court of Justice of the Canary Islands and without the need to go to the Supreme Court.
Also, in 2005, She was the first trans woman to be a candidate for Las Palmas de Gran Canaria Carnival Queen. He managed to make the Spanish transgender community visible.
In his film career, he participated in Fotos (1996), a film written by Elio Quiroga, and was also part of 8 años (2021), by José David Martínez Alcázar. She also went through the small screen as a presenter on Antena 3 Canarias. However, it was with Veneno, directed by Los Javis, that he achieved international success.
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In 2020, thanks to this paper. She won the Ondas Award for best female performer, shared by Jedet and Daniela Santiago, her companions in the series and trans actresses. Her last appearance on television was on the Saturday Deluxe program where she took the opportunity to say goodbye to the public.
“Seeing her work every day on the set of Veneno was a lesson for the entire team. Her interpretation remains forever, ”said Suma Content, the producer of Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi (who directed the series Veneno).
What is the Poison series about?
It is an autobiographical series of one of the LGBTIQ+ icons of Spain, Cristiana Ortíz, better known as La Veneno. The one-season series tells her experiences since childhood, about how she discovered her identity within a conservative and homophobic family in Adra, Almería.
Through Valeria, a journalism student who discovers herself as a trans woman thanks to ‘La Veneno’, who goes in search of the actress to write a book about her story, anecdotes of Cristina Ortiz’s life are broken down .
It narrates how it is that behind her fun personality, empowerment and great charisma, she suffered several years of her life when she was rejected by her loved ones and thus had to move and dedicate herself to prostitution due to not having job opportunities, where she found her most great friends like Paca la Piraña, who is also part of the series.
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He tells how he achieved fame with television appearances in the 90s and won the hearts of the audience thanks to his unique way of being. Through her life, the history of the LGBTIQ + community in Spain from the sixties to the present is known. This also narrates her death which remains an enigma.