World Premiere of LEVEL UP! to be Presented at Latino Theater Company

What does it mean to live as your true, authentic self? Latino Theater Company will present the world premiere of Level Up!, an emotionally resonant, family-friendly new play by Gabriel Rivas Gómez that unfolds across everyday reality as well as in a vividly imagined virtual realm. Directed by Fidel Gómez (Just Like Us, Tacos La Brooklyn), this technically innovative production runs April 4 through May 3, at The Los Angeles Theatre Center in downtown Los Angeles. Six low-priced previews take place March 26 through April 3.

Desi López, a trans tween, is afraid to come out to her family. In her oversized hoodie, Desi is seen as a boy IRL (in real life). But inside The Proxy, a richly imagined virtual world within the play's digital realm, Desi discovers the freedom to exist as her true self: a powerful female warrior with enormous butterfly wings who embarks on an epic quest to save her dying dog and reunite with her mother.

Blending live performance with projection and inventive design, Level Up! explores identity, family and transformation in an era increasingly shaped by virtual environments and simulated realities.

Desi is played by 14-year-old Mathias Brinda, with Xol Gonzalez as her older brother, Memo; Richard Azurdia as Papá; Sol Crespo as Mami; and Andi René Christensen as Azlan, her beloved dog. Khalif J. Gillett plays 8eatles the 8ard, a mystical guide within The Proxy, and Wiley Naman Strasser appears as Smallfish, a formidable creature of the virtual landscape. Mauricio Marte and Celeste Lanuza are understudies.

The production's dual realities of the López family home and the fantasy environment of The Proxy are brought to life by scenic designer François-Pierre Couture, lighting designer Xinyuan Li and projection designer Hsuan-Kuang Hsieh.

Costumes are designed by Maria Catarina Copelli, sound design is by Robert Revell, fight choreography is by Edgar Landa, and casting is by Lolário Casting. The production manager is May Congxiao Fei, and Esperanza América is assistant director. The production stage manager is Ariana Michel, assisted by Crystal Nieto.

“Level Up! is a multigenerational story that moves between the physical world and a vividly imagined virtual realm, exploring identity, transformation and the courage to be seen,” says playwright Gabriel Rivas Gómez. “The artists behind this production reflect an extraordinary range of races, ethnicities, gender identities and lived experiences, including trans and gender-fluid voices. From the start, Fidel envisioned the stage as an interface, a living portal into a digital environment, rather than a traditional set, and our designers are bringing that vision to life in marvelous ways. Collaborating with this team feels like walking alongside giants — even the ones who are only 14.”

Co-commissioned by Latino Theater Company and Children's Theatre Company of Minneapolis as part of the Generation Now initiative supported by the Mellon Foundation, Level Up! was developed in Latino Theater Company's Circle of Imaginistas playwriting group. Lead actor Matthias Brinda has been involved with the project since its earliest workshops, including developmental productions in Minneapolis, MN at Children's Theatre Company and Atlanta, GA at the Alliance Theatre in addition to those at Latino Theater Company.

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