Ricardo Alfonso
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Age: 33. “My birthday was on October 15, so I’m not in a rush to get to 34 yet.”
Currently: Playing Galileo, the rock dreamer who single-handedly takes on the Globalsoft Corporation in a quest to reignite the power of live rock ‘n’ roll that has been prohibited in the London hit We Will Rock You. “I saw the show when I first came to England in 2005 and immediately had a very strong relationship with the part—it fitted with the characteristics of my voice, and I thought I could give it a fair shot. It’s a very physical role, and I also liked that. You don’t stop on stage for a single moment.”
Hometown: Born in Luanda, Angola, Alfonso’s parents returned to Lisbon, Portugal while he was still a baby, and he lived there all his life—until now. Earlier this year, he bought his own flat in Belvedere, Kent. “It’s on the Dartford line,” he says, “so it’s easy for work.”
A Calling: “I was studying marketing at college, and was in my third year of a five-year course when I found that something else was calling me louder,” he recalls. “I had to make a decision: whether to carry on, or try to go down the musical and theatre route. It was not easy for my parents to hear, but nevertheless I did it and decided to audition for a TV drama series with songs. I got it and that was it.” Other jobs followed, doing TV shows and plays, as well as working in revue-type shows in Portuguese casinos. He never went for formal training, though: “As I worked with different directors, they were my teachers,” he explains. “I learnt as I went along”.
A scene from We Will Rock You
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Taking to the Seas: His biggest break was aboard the Queen Mary 2. “I did a show about Judy Garland called Zing Went the Strings, another called Funkadelic and another Rock at the Opera. It was brilliant. A fantastic experience,” he beams. “It was the perfect combination of being able to see the world and get to do what you love doing—and getting paid for it. It doesn’t get better than that.” His travels took from from China to Egypt and the Panama Canal to the Suez. “I’ve been to five continents,” he exclaims. When his tour of duty ended, Alfonso returned to dry land in Portugal and had to make another decision. I decided to take another gamble and sold my house and my car, left my poor dog with my sister and came to the West End. People I had met on the ship had always challenged me to do so, but when I did, I sent over 50 letters with CDs and DVDs to management companies and agents and had them all returned. I was starting to despair when Belinda King, whom I’d worked for on the ship, introduced me to the agents Regan and Rimmer, and they took me on.” He was sent up for a few auditions; one of them was for We Will Rock You.
The Importance of Queen: “I’ve always known their work,” Alfonso says of the iconic band. “My favourite album is A Night at the Opera. It was a shock to the system that at my final audition for We Will Rock You, Brian May was there. It was very strange to perform in front of someone who wrote and performed all these songs.” Alfonso was originally cast in the ensemble, where he also understudied Galileo and Britney, but he was then promoted this October to the lead role of Galileo itself. “I feel very fortunate. I have to pinch myself every day to remind myself it’s real and it’s true. I love the songs I get to sing, like ‘We Are the Champions,’ ‘We Will Rock You,’ ‘Who Wants to Live Forever’ and my personal favourite, ‘Under Pressure.’ I will never do a better job than Freddie Mercury and David Bowie, of course, but I give it a try.”