La Polaca

Josefa Cotillo Martínez La Polaca Madrid June 16 1944 Seville June 2 2010 was a Spanish dancer and actress She was born in the Lavapiés neighborhood of Madrid After leaving her studies at the age of ten she began to dedicate herself to flamenco dancing and created her own style in an absolutely selftaught way At the age of twelve she made her debut as a professional in the play La Parrilla at the Alcázar theater in Madrid At the age of sixteen she went to America as part of the company of the dancer José Greco in which she quickly became one of the main figures Her nickname is attributed to her dancing a Polish dance At the end of the fifties she toured the Soviet Union Europe and the United States where she appeared on the Ed Sullivan show and performed before President Kennedy Back in Spain she consolidated her upward career with successive tours and reached the status of leading figure in flamenco ballets such as Los canasteros and Las brujas She made her film debut in 1965 with the film Con el viento solano by Mario Camus Throughout the seventies she participated in various titles giving life to passionate characters through which she frequently exhibited her dancing skills Among the films in which she intervenes are El amor brujo 1967 by RoviraBeleta The Secretaries 1969 by Pedro Lazaga and Del amor y la muerte 1977 by Antonio GiménezRico In 1978 she appeared as a judge on the dance contest Fiebre del 2 a Mexican program on Televisa At the turn of the decade in the eighties her career began to decline although she would still participate in Carlos Sauras new version of El amor brujo 1986