Famous Guatemalan Actor Herbert Meneses Dies

Herbert Meneses was one of the most important figures in Guatemalan radio drama, theater, and cinema; presented health losses since August 2020.

Who wants to be part of the children’s radio drama?” Said a teacher from La Juventud school. A boy barely 10 years old raised his hand. It was Herbert Meneses, who managed to forge an impressive career in the theater, as an actor, director, and playwright.

On Saturday, March 6, 2021, the artistic union confirmed the death of Meneses, who belonged to the “Golden Age” of the Guatemalan radio drama.

In August 2020, Meneses presented health problems that forced him to be admitted to the hospital. Later, in February 2021, the Guatemalan actor was hospitalized again due to his deteriorating health.

Artists like Mónica Sarmientos lamented the death of Meneses. “Happy homecoming,” wrote the Guatemalan artist.

Lamento profundamente la muerte de este increíble actor guatemalteco. Feliz regreso a casa, querido Herbert Meneses. pic.twitter.com/oDVtxCZEff

— Monica Sarmientos (@Sarmientowsky) March 6, 2021

Trajectory

Herbert Meneses was born on July 17, 1940, he started in the world of acting when he was 10 years old. His voice was heard for the first time in Marta Bolaños de Prado’s Children’s Radio Theater program, in the 1950s, when he began as an actor and later became a theater director. The experience and knowledge he gained opened other doors for him.

One of the characters that have been engraved in the public mind was his interpretation in the monologue El diario de un loco. But so has his leading role in the feature film El silencio de Neto (1994), directed by Luis Argueta.

Neto’s Silence addresses the story of Neto Yepes, a boy who grew up in troubled Guatemala after the tenure of Jacobo Árbenz. The film, which was written by Luis Argueta and Justo Chang, was produced entirely in Guatemala and was a local and international success.

It was part of the official selection of the Sundance Film Festival and received awards at the Latino festivals in New York, Biarritz, and Huelva. Meneses was part of the final scene of this Guatemalan film that stood out internationally.

He also participated in  Where the roads end,  Automatic Symphony  and the television series  Cuarto Poder.  In 2013 he was in the film  Granos de Lágrima s, inspired by The Tempest, by Flavio Herrera.

The feature film had a duration of 1.45 hours, it is a project of the General Directorate of University Extension (Digeu) of the Usac, with
support from the technical team of TV Usac.

He studied acting technique and theater directing with the Japanese teacher Seki Sano and with the Argentine Carlos Catania.

He acted in cinema, radio drama, radio soap opera, and tele-theater. Throughout his career, he worked with prominent directors such as Samara de Córdova, Rubén Morales Monroy, Carlos Mencos, and Manuel José Arce, among others. Among the passions of Meneses were meditation and yoga.

“Life, in general, is a great theater where we are constantly acting,” said the actor in an interview he gave to Prensa Libre in 2004.

The world of art and culture left their reactions on social networks to the death of the artist. Among them, Mónica Sarmientos lamented the death of the actor.