María Clara Alonso

María Clara Alonso
Born February 2, 1990
Rosario, Argentina
Occupation Actress, singer, TV hostess

Musical career

Instruments Piano, vocals
Years active 2007–present
Labels Sony BMG, Walt Disney
Website
claraalonso.com.ar

María Clara Alonso (born February 2, 1990 in Rosario, Argentina) is an Argentine actress, singer, and television hostess. She debuted as an actress in the 2007 Argentine remake of High School Musical. Since 2007, she has acted in various Disney Channel programs in Latin America. She is known for her leading role as Angie Carrará in the Disney Channel Latin America Series, Violetta.[1]

Early life

Maria Clara Alonso was born on February 2, 1990 in Rosario, Argentina. Her mother is a pediatrician and pulmonary specialist and her father is an engineer. She is the oldest child and has two younger brothers named Agustín and Ignacio. At 2, she moved to Capitán Bermúdez, a smaller city located outside of Rosario. She and her family moved to Buenos Aires when she was eight years old. As a child, she practiced gymnastics, swimming, and dance. Clara played field hockey and volleyball. She attended primary school at Cayetano Errico in Capitán Bermúdez and later graduated high school from Instituto Inmaculada de Castelar in Buenos Aires. At 8, she quit field hockey and asked her parents to enroll her in musical comedy classes at "Broadway Street", an acting school in Haedo, Buenos Aires. She received lessons in tap, acting, and clown while attending. In addition, she participated in several plays such as Alice in Wonderland at the Astral theater.[2]

Acting career

2007–2011: Career beginnings

After completing high school, Alonso decided to pursue acting full-time. One month later, she attended castings for High School Musical: La Selección.[3] Alonso was one of the twenty people selected to participate in the musical reality competition. It was broadcast on Channel 13 and Disney Channel in Argentina. She was eliminated in the tenth week,[4] but was later called back to be a member of a concert tour throughout Argentina. Subsequently, she was also cast in her first acting role as "Clari" in the Argentine film version of High School Musical.

During a tour stop in La Rioja, Argentina for the film's concert, she attracted the attention of Disney Channel Latin America producers who cast her as a hostess in "Zapping Zone", a youth-targeted celebrity entertainment show for Argentina. She hosted the program alongside Daniel Martins and Carolina Ibarra. Due to the show's success, it began airing in other countries throughout South America.

From April 27 to May 2, 2008, she traveled to Orlando, Florida to participate in the Disney Channel Games 2008. In Latin America, the program aired from September 5 to October 3. She was part of the green team called "The Cyclones", alongside several international Disney stars such as Jason Dolley, Jennifer Stone, Chelsea Staub, Joe Jonas, Brad Kavanagh, Dylan Sprouse and team captain David Henrie. Her team finished in third place with 55 points.

On October 21, 2008, during a taping of "Zapping Zone", Alonso premiered her debut single "A mi alrededor" with the collaboration of Sophie Oliver Sanchéz. A music video was also filmed and aired throughout Latin America on Disney Channel. This was her first solo single for Walt Disney Records' label.

In 2010, she starred in the Disney Channel mini-series Highway: Rodando la Aventura which is the fourth original production of Disney Channel Latin America. The series tells the story of a group of eight friends in a motorhome traveling throughout Latin America. Alonso played a young perfectionist, who was obsessed with cleanliness and order.[5] That same year she began working as a voice-over actress on the Spanish-language version of the Disney Channel series Pecezuelos.[6]

In August 2010, she traveled to São Paulo, Brazil to shoot a two-part episode for the Disney Channel series "Cuando toca la campana", which is based on the original US version, As the Bell Rings. She played Jennifer, a new student in the final days of the school year. The first part of the episode aired on Disney Channel on December 1, 2011, while the second part of the episode was aired on December 8, 2011. After spending more than four years on "Zapping Zone", Alonso announced her departure from the show on August 12, 2011.

2012–present: Violetta and international breakout

In March 2012, she appeared in an episode in the Disney XD series Latin America show, "Peter Punk", where she played "Piranha", a very determined teenage punk. In 2012, she was cast as "Angie", the estranged aunt and music teacher of the title character, in the tween musical Disney Channel series Violetta.[7] Alonso also lent her vocals to several recordings featured on the series first and second seasons. Filming for both seasons occurred in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The show was also filmed additional scenes in Madrid, Spain for the second season.

In February 2014, Alonso began rehearsals for the musical theatre production Groupie in Buenos Aires. The play is based on Beatles songs and their cultural and social impact in Buenos Aires in 1963. It premiered at The Cavern in Buenos Aires on June 4, 2014.[8][9] Alonso played "Sandra" in the production. On March 21, 2014, Alonso confirmed with fans via her official Twitter account that she would continue playing "Angie" for the third season of Violetta.[10]

During March and April 2014, she traveled to Milan, Italy, to film Angie e le ricette di Violetta ("Angie and Violetta's recipes" in English), a special cooking v-log mini-series based on Violetta. In the series, Angie briefly travels to Italy to improve her cooking skills with help via video-chatting from a friend, Olga. The role was Alonso's first Italian-speaking part. The series is expected to have 20 episodes. After filming the mini-series, Alonso returned to Argentina to work on the third and final season of Violetta.[11][12] The series premiered on June 9, 2014, on the Disney Channel in Italy. In late November 2014, Violetta concluded production on its third and final season in Buenos Aires. The third season premiered in Argentina on July 28, 2014. The series finale is expected to air on February 6, 2015, in Argentina.[13]

For one week in mid-January 2015, Alonso filmed the second season of Angie e le ricette di Violetta in Milan, Italy. Following the conclusion of production on the series, she revealed to fans via her official Facebook page that the show marked her final project with Disney after an eight-year career with the network.[14] On January 26, 2015, Alonso was announced as a contestant on new season of the reality competition Notti sul ghiaccio ("Nights on Ice" in English) for the Italian network Rai 1. The competition pairs celebrities with professional ice skaters. Alonso trains for the competition in Rome. The season premiered on February 21, 2015 in Italy.[15][16]

Personal life

At 19, she moved from Castelar to Belgrano, a neighborhood in northern Buenos Aires, to further pursue her acting career. She speaks English and Italian. In 2013, Alonso began learning Italian in order to work in Italy. In 2014, she began dating Spanish actor Diego Domínguez, who she co-starred with in Violetta.[3][17][18]

Filmography

Films

Year Title Role Notes
2008 High School Musical: El Desafio Clari High School Musical Argentine version. Debut role.
Tinker Bell Victoria Spanish-language voiceover

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2007 High School Musical: La Selección Herself/Contestant Reality show
2007–2011 Zapping Zone Herself Hostess for Disney Channel Latin America
2008 Disney Channel Games Herself The Cyclones/Green Team
2010 Highway: Rodando la aventura Clari Lead role, Disney Channel Latin America
2010 XXIV Premios Anuales de la Academia Herself Television Hostess
2010–2014 Pecezuelos Bea (voice) Spanish-language voiceover
2011 Cuando toca la campana Olga Jennifer González 1 episode, Disney Channel Latin America
2012 Peter Punk Yamila ″Piraña″ 1 episode, Disney XD Latin America
2012–2015 Violetta Angie Carrará Lead role, Disney Channel Latin America
2014–2015 Angie e le ricette di Violetta Angie Carrará Lead role, Debut Italian-speaking role. Violetta spin-off mini-series
2015 Notti sul ghiaccio Herself/Contestant Reality show competition

Theatre

Year Production Role Notes
2014 Groupie Sandra Musical

Discography

Singles
Soundtracks albums
Promotional singles

References

  1. ↑ "Violetta: Disney Channel presenta a los protagonistas de su nueva serie Leer Completa en: Violetta: Disney Channel presenta a los protagonistas de su nueva serie - Anime, Manga y TV http://www.anmtvla.com/2011/12/violetta-disney-channel-presenta-los.html#ixzz2RJXLp0zH". .anmtvla.com (in Spanish). Retrieved April 19, 2013.
  2. ↑ Official site biography
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Clara: Nunca imaginé la repercusión de Violetta". Revista Fack. Retrieved 2014-08-19.
  4. ↑ "María Clara Alonso o Ariel Leone". clari-highschoolmusical-laseleccion.blogspot.com/. August 25, 2007. Retrieved April 19, 2013.
  5. ↑ "Personaje de Clari en Highway: Rodando la aventura.". Youtube.com (in Spanish).
  6. ↑ "Llega Pecezuelos: la última apuesta animada de Disney Channel" (in Spanish). thewonderfuldisneyworld.wordpress.com/. Retrieved April 19, 2013.
  7. ↑ "Angie" (in Spanish). disneylatino.com. Retrieved April 19, 2013.
  8. ↑ "Síntesis - 04.06.2014 - lanacion.com". Lanacion.com.ar. Retrieved 2014-08-19.
  9. ↑ Laubfal on 03/06/2014. "Clara Alonso como una "groupie" de Los Beatles – Diario digital sobre el negocio del espectaculo". Laubfal.com. Retrieved 2014-08-19.
  10. ↑ "Violetta 3: Clara Alonso tornerà nei panni di Angie". Bambini.eu. 2014-03-24. Retrieved 2014-08-19.
  11. ↑ "Angie e le ricette di Violetta dal 9 Giugno su Disney Channel » Sw Tweens". Tweens.screenweek.it. 2014-03-28. Retrieved 2014-08-19.
  12. ↑ "Clari Alonso". Claraalonso.com.ar. Retrieved 2014-08-19.
  13. ↑ Yara Simon (November 27, 2014). "Martina Stoessel Says Goodbye Disney Show". Latin Post. Retrieved September 9, 2014.
  14. ↑ Laura Boni (January 20, 2015). "Violetta: Lodovica Comello, Diego Dominguez e Clara Alonso rimpatriata a Milano". Ginger Generation. Retrieved January 29, 2015.
  15. ↑ Gigi DaQuino (January 26, 2015). "Da Violetta 3 a Notti sul Ghiaccio: Clara Alonso in gara su Rai Uno!". Melty.it. Retrieved January 29, 2015.
  16. ↑ "Milly Carlucci, Notti sul ghiaccio. Concorrenti: Valeria Marini, Giulio Base…". Bltizquotidiano. January 29, 2015. Retrieved January 29, 2015.
  17. ↑ Lizardo Ponce (July 14, 2014). "Diego Domínguez, el galán que enamora con su tonada". Dia Dia. Retrieved January 29, 2015.
  18. ↑ Laubfal (September 15, 2014). "Clara Alonso feliz con su novio grabando "Violetta" en Sevilla". Laubfal. Retrieved January 29, 2015.

External links

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