MAR 26 - MAY 3, 2026

Becoming yourself is the ultimate quest

Desi, a trans tween, is afraid to come out to her family and only feels like she can be herself in her virtual world. A quest to save her dying dog pushes her to deal with challenges both in the virtual and real worlds. Level Up! is a play about gaming, family and growing up.

Featuring

Richard Azurdia

Mathias Brinda

Sol Marina Crespo

Xol Gonzalez

Khalíf J. Gillett

Wiley Naman Strasser

Andi René Christensen

Celeste Lanuza

Mauricio Marte

Reviews

WONDERFULLY ENTERTAINING FOR ALL AGES… An engaging and moving story about identity, courage and acceptance…a striking fusion of stagecraft and digital imagination… A MUST-SEE PRODUCTION.
— Pauline Adamek, Arts Beat LA

FASCINANTE… consolida como una de esas obras que logran unir invención formal y emoción verdadera.” — Nestor Fantini, Hispanic LA

AN EPIC TALE, A STORY OF RESILIENCE AND SPEAKING TRUTH TO POWER… The play’s many modern and retro references surprise and delight, like a video game’s Easter eggs.”
— Laura Foti Cohen, Larchmont Buzz

FIRST RATE… [a] rich, bizarre gaming fantasy world… The cast, under Fidel Gomez’s sympathetic, fluid direction, is very appealing…. giv[es] way to an emotional resolution.”
— Bruce Feldman, Politics, Money, Culture

SINGULAR AND INCREDIBLY ENDEARING… a good time for all especially for those who love video games.”
— Edward Hong, The Nerds of Color

Credits

Written by
Gabriel Rivas Gómez

Directed by
Fidel Gomez

Scenic Designer
François-Pierre Couture

Costume Designer
Maria Catarina Copelli

Lighting Designer
Xinyuan Li (Lee)

Sound Designer
Robert Revell

Projection Design
Hsuan-Kuang Hsieh

Fight Choreographer
Edgar Landa

Production Stage Manager
Ariana Michel

Production Manager
May Fei

Casting Director
Espi Revell

Assistant Stage Manager
Crystal Nieto

Assistant Director
Esperanza América

Wardrobe Supervisor
Manee Leija


Level Up! is a multigenerational play co-commissioned by Latino Theater Company and
Children’s Theatre Company of Minneapolis as part of the Mellon Foundation’s Generation Now initiative, and developed in Latino Theater Company’s Circle of Imaginistas playwriting groupr

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