Gilda Love, a symbol of Barcelona’s nightlife and Spain’s oldest drag queen, has died at 100. Her story, marked by resilience and artistry, was captured in the film ‘Cantando en las azoteas’.
Gilda Love, the legendary drag queen who became a fixture of Barcelona’s nightlife, has died in the city just weeks before her 101st birthday. Known offstage as Eduardo Rondón, she held the distinction of being Spain’s oldest drag performer, a title that reflected both her longevity and her enduring influence on the city’s cultural scene.
Born in San Fernando de Cádiz in 1925, Gilda Love’s journey took her from the streets of Andalusia to the heart of Barcelona’s El Raval district, which she affectionately called “El barrio chino.” After completing military service, she worked in Parisian venues such as Madame Arthur, where the world of cabaret left a lasting impression. Inspired by the film ‘Gilda’ starring Rita Hayworth, she adopted her stage name and began building a career that would span decades.
Arriving in Barcelona in 1967, Gilda Love found a city that, even under Franco’s regime and its repressive laws against homosexuality, offered more freedom than most. She became a star at venues like El Cangrejo, Bodega Apolo, and the now-closed Bodega Bohemia, performing alongside icons such as Carmen Picot (La Wernof) and Carmen de Mairena. Despite her public success, her personal life was marked by hardship, including rejection from her family and violence from her brothers, as she recounted in interviews.
By day, Gilda worked as a cleaner; by night, she captivated audiences with songs like ‘Colorete’, always performing live rather than lip-syncing. In her later years, financial difficulties forced her to seek social assistance, a process complicated by her modest earnings from performances. The documentary ‘Cantando en las azoteas’, directed by Enric Ribes, brought her story to a wider audience and preserved the memory of a Barcelona that has largely disappeared.
Recognition for Gilda Love’s contributions grew in her final years, with renewed invitations to perform and a broader appreciation of her role in the city’s cultural history. Her persistence on stage, even as age made remembering lyrics and monologues difficult, stood in contrast to the increasingly polished world of contemporary drag. For many, she embodied the spirit and resilience of a generation that shaped Barcelona’s nightlife.
Gilda Love’s passing comes at a time when Spain continues to reflect on the legacy of its cultural icons and the evolution of its social landscape. Her life story, immortalized in film and memory, highlights the challenges faced by LGBTQ+ performers during decades of repression and the gradual transformation of Spanish society. The impact of her career is felt not only in the venues she graced but also in the broader recognition of diversity and artistic expression in Spain. In a related context, the city’s changing social fabric has been the subject of recent coverage, such as the rise of far-right parties in Catalonia’s parliament, reflecting ongoing debates about identity and inclusion.
Gilda Love’s story serves as a reminder of the resilience required to survive and thrive in the face of adversity. Her legacy endures in the memories of those who witnessed her performances and in the ongoing evolution of Barcelona’s vibrant cultural scene.
