Silvia Santelices

In 1960 Santelices entered the Catholic University of Chile to study theater. While still a student, she joined the nascent dramatic department of her alma mater's television station, Canal 13, where she initially participated in televised plays.^[1] In 1967 she was part of the cast of the first telenovela shot in Chile, Los días jóvenes [es], in which she shared the screen with actors such as Mirella Latorre, Mario Rodríguez, and Leonardo Perucci [es].^[2]

During the 1980s and 90s Santelices participated in numerous soap operas on Canal 13 and TVN, most notably La madrastra (1981), Los títeres (1984), and Fuera de control [es] (1999).^[2] She also played Lucia Solar, mother of Teresa of the Andes (played by Paulina Urrutia) in TVN's miniseries Teresa de los Andes [es] (1989).

After years of absence from television, in 2005 she participated in the television series Brujas, and has joined other dramatic productions such as Papi Ricky and Veinteañero a los 40.

She is known for having a great stage presence, characteristic smooth voice, and great interpretive power. Since the late 1990s she has lived in the city of Rancagua,^[3] where she is part of Casa del Arte Theater Company.

In the 1970s Santelices was a supporter of Popular Unity. The 1973 coup d'état took her by surprise in Venezuela, where she was exiled for five years.^[4]

She was elected councilor of Rancagua in the municipal elections of 2008 on behalf of the Socialist Party.^[5] In the 2012 elections she returned to obtain a seat on the Municipal Council of Rancagua, receiving 4,533 votes, corresponding to 6.38%, obtaining the third communal majority.^[6]

• Silvia Santelices at IMDb