She achieved fame in theaters and in the cinema in the 70s, although the true passion of the Catalan was bullfighting, so she tried her luck as a bullfighter.
Alicia Tomas died at the age of 72 in her native Barcelona (1949). A unique character from Spain in the 70s. She came to bullfighting after achieving fame on the stage of the theaters in Madrid and Barcelona. Angela had opened the door for women to bullfighting on foot during the Franco regime. That exotic rebellion attracted Alicia Tomas, who had known bullfighting at the hands of her father, a great fan subscriber to the Monumental.
She moved to Madrid to combine her performances in the theaters – of great success – with her first bullfighting lessons. Manolo Lozano, a personal friend of this singular artist, is saddened when she heard the news: “The last time we spoke, she gave me her condolences for Pablo’s death. What a shame … When she came to Madrid she lived with her mother, she picked them up at the Gran Vía in the summer after their performances and we would go to the gardens of El Pardo to fight in the hall under the light of the Palace lanterns “.
The businessman Paco Rodriguez exclusively empowered Alicia Tomas along with Rosarito de Colombia, La Algabena, Lola Maya, and Mary Fortes. They toured Spain several times in a show that revolutionized in the early 70s. They filled the squares. Of all of them, the one who achieved a more relevant career was Mary Fortes, mother of the Malaga bullfighter, who excitedly remembers her partner: “The first time we fought together was in Vélez Málaga, she conveyed a lot of joy and was very nice. She was not understood I was very impressed by her that she had everything, she was a star in Barcelona and she left her cache behind to dedicate herself to what had been her dream as a child, to be a bullfighter, but which she had been able to develop because it was forbidden. We fought about 50 celebrations together. I was very scared but I was very happy fighting “.
Those who saw her fight highlight her mastery of the scene and aesthetics. Those who knew her more in-depth remember her as a sweet, intelligent, and characterful person. Manolo Lozano can’t help but recreate that memory, “she was gorgeous, she was in a convertible with a scarf on her head, she had a very stylized figure that favored her to fight, she was like an angel. They called her the Queen of Parallel because she had triumphed as a vedette in all the theaters of the Parallel of Barcelona “.
She left everything for the bull during that beautiful three-year stage in which she came to fight in important squares. She received a goring on the right thigh that she did not hesitate to show her relatives. After being a bullfighter she returned to the cinema, participating in films such as Los Cuervos, Las Crueles, Vuelve San Valentín, Bahía de Palma, The House of the Living Dead, Target Bikini, and A Different Couple, among others.
Her last bullfighting foray was as manager of Rafael Pera ‘El Boni’ in 1985. A brave woman who fought to achieve her dream in the arena has gone in silence despite having achieved fame in other performing arts. She fought passionately for parity when there was no Ministry of Equality.
Amelia Warner
Amelia Warner writes all the Latest Articles. She mostly covers Entertainment topics, but at times loves to write about movie reviews as well.
