True Mirage Theater Finds Its Home In The Falls

Daniel Gil as the Man/Joseph arrives at a support group meeting to get some things off his chest while Anna Russell as Ruth listens in True Mirage Theater’s “SAA (not that one).” Gil, True Mirage’s co-artistic director, also directed the world premiere of the play by Luis Roberto Herrera. (Photo courtesy of True Mirage Theater)

In 2024, True Mirage Theater dared to do the offbeat Broadway musical “Ride the Cyclone.” It was an odd choice, but one that paid off.  The setup is a musical where six dead teens participate in a contest to see who will come back to life after a tragic roller coaster accident. They staged it at Main Street Playhouse in Miami Lakes before they had their own space. Audiences and critics loved it.

The company is headed by co-artistic directors Daniel Gil and Darcy Hernandez-Gil, husband and wife actors, directors, and everything else, who started True Mirage to do the kinds of works not typically staged in South Florida.

“The company was founded in 2018 and we began by doing festivals of new works by BIPOC playwrights, new musicals, short plays and one-person shows,” says Hernandez-Gil.

They began producing full-length productions in 2023.

Raquel Lebish as Mia and Cameron Holder as Troy in True Mirage’s world premiere of “SAA (not that one)” by Luis Roberto Herrera. (Photo courtesy of True Mirage Theater)

After putting on shows wherever they could rent theater space, including a long stint at Main Street Playhouse in Miami Lakes, True Mirage now performs in Palmetto Bay’s Falls area with a smallish black box on the second floor of the Falls Business Center surrounded by offices on a street off U.S. 1 near Pinecrest dotted with warehouses.

True Mirage recently ended its 2024-25 season, the first in its Falls Business Center space, with an original play by local playwright Luis Roberto Herrera. The dramedy, “SAA (not that one)” about a support group that meets weekly gets confused a lot with the real SAA (Sex Addicts Anonymous), however, these kindred spirits share a common experience that doesn’t primarily have to do with sex.

True Miraga was introduced to the work during their 2020 Minority Report festival of play readings and presented the world premiere of “SAA (not that one)” at the end of June, directed by Gil who is also in the ensemble. Hernandez-Gill was assistant director. Producing the play, with its local professional cast, is what True Mirage’s mission is, which is to champion new works while elevating underrepresented artists. Bringing to the stage, shows like “Cyclone” also support the mission of staging cutting edge plays and musicals.

There aren’t many regional groups that do original work, too, so “SAA”’s world premiere was a welcome surprise during the lagging summer months of South Florida theater. And the play, which is perfectly constructed for ensembles, is written well enough that it could have a shelf life on regional theater stages outside of Miami.

As the play begins, two women are setting up a school room; one enters with a cardboard box of coffee and the other with a box of doughnuts. There’s a circle of six chairs and a sign hanging on the door that reads “Welcome to SAA (not that one).”

Regulars of this SAA group arrive and settle in. There’s the jaded Troy (Cameron Holder), his bestie Mia (Raquel Lebish), not as jaded but just as sarcastic, the mother hen Ruth (Anna Russell), the leader of the group, the buoyant Clara (Mariantonia Meija) whose fondness for otherworldly beings has everyone against her, Aya  (Marla Lopez, who looks like a young Kathyrn Heigl) whose recall of the experience that brought her to SAA is harrowing, and newcomer, Vito (Nestor Santana), who ends up being the anchor of the play. This was Santana’s first professional production after training with the company’s Mini Mirage.

Clara’s (Mariantonia Mejia) lovefest with otherworldly beings has Ruth (Anna Russell) questioning her motives. (Photo courtesy of True Mirage Theater)

To give away what this SAA is all about would be an unkind spoiler. The show may find itself being produced somewhere else and we wouldn’t want to ruin the surprise. Let’s just say that the Man/Joseph who enters the group and must get a secret off his chest is definitely in the wrong group.

They offer him a chair. He doesn’t want to sit “I’m just gonna stand and share because I need to stand to get it all off my chest,” he says, confessing that he’s “never been to one of these but I’ve practiced this in front of the mirror more time than I can count. . .”

Gil as the bearded man in a disheveled suit is all nervous neurosis. He’s a great actor and brings some fantastic comic timing to the revealing monologue that Herrera has gifted the character.

The rest of the ensemble watches and listens intently, some looking at each other in surprise, but never upstaging to take away from the carefully crafted monologue.

Herrera has crafted the characters distinctly, each with their own arcs and each actor delivers.

When the group reveals the meeting’s focus, the Man utters an apt four-letter word and abruptly leaves, which prompts the group to consider a name change. It’s something they’ve been pondering anyway.

Nestor Santana, who appeared in his first professional role in “SAA (not that one)” after training with True Mirage’s Mini Mirage Theater is center. From left, in rear, are Raquel Lebish (Mia), Cameron Holder (Troy), Nestor Santana (Vito), Mariantonia Mejia (Clara), Anna Russell (Ruth). (Photo courtesy of True Mirage Theater)

After all kidding is aside, there are some serious issues the group has in common. They’ve all shared the same experience – did it really happen and for Vito, is he interacting with real people?

True Mirage attracts a younger audience, which is not only good but necessary for local theater.

They are gearing up for their next season that will feature another world premiere, “With the Swallows” by former New Theatre artistic director Ricky J Martinez, in September and the Miami professional premiere of “Carrie, The Musical,” which the group’s Mini Mirage performed in January at Hialeah High School.

Before the fall season starts, True Mirage will be collaborating with Martinez and Randy Garcia for “M1A: Miami One Acts.” The 14th year of the fest, it was held last year at Main Street Playhouse. This year, it settles into True Mirage’s space on Friday, Aug. 15  and Saturday, Aug. 16.

For those of us who are looking for something original before the onslaught of the busy theater season, the one-act weekend — seven playwrights, seven one acts and 15-plus actors, one program, two different nights — sounds like just the ticket.

WHAT: M1A: Miami One Acts

WHERE: True Mirage Theater, 8846 SW 19th Terrace, Suite B, 2^nd floor, Miami

WHEN: Friday, Aug. 15 through Saturday, Aug. 16

COST: Early-bird purchase: $25 through Sunday, 7/20. Then $30. Tickets at m1a.ticketspice.com/summer25

INFO: (786) 484 4711 and www.truemiragetheater.com

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