“She doesn’t lie to anyone”

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A character who is not limited to gender identity

In the casting of the TV Globo soap opera, Gabriela experiences a turning point when she plays the pharmacist responsible for distributing medicine to the inhabitants of Chacrinha. For her, Viviane represents precisely the type of role she planned when she dreamed of being in a soap opera.

“That was all I was expressing to the universe when I was thinking about this space,” he says. The character is a trans woman, as is the artist, but her story doesn’t end there. Viviane works, maintains relationships, maintains bonds with friends and family, goes through romantic conflicts and faces barriers without her identity being the sole dramatic axis.

This approach is essential for the actress, who highlights the importance of the social function of representation. “I think it’s very important, because we’re telling a very important story for all of Brazil. Both for women and for LGBT people, black women, people from the periphery. It’s very important that we can write, really. The responsibility we have to transmit very important information is enormous,” he explains.

According to her, audiences will still see new moments of tension, noise and reconnections within the character’s arc, especially in the relationship that attracted attention due to her chemistry with Pedro Novaes.

Construction of a new representation

Gabriela also reflects on the place that Viviane occupies in the soap opera and in Brazilian television fiction. “It’s very important to bring trans people into the media. To represent these people,” he says. For her, the responsibility of playing a trans woman in prime time is not only about visibility, but also a concern for the narrative. “It’s a huge responsibility, right? Because we’re talking about the country that kills the most transfemininities in the world. And to have representation like Viviane, and in a new place, in a new form…”

In this new place, Viviane appears with multiple layers. “Viviane, she is trans, but trans does not define her story and her plot. Viviane is a pharmacist. Viviane is Lúcia’s best friend, but she also takes care of Joelle, takes care of Tia Ligia. She works at the Foundation. So, she has a lot of history”, lists the actress. This complexity was a common choice between her and the management to avoid the stereotypes that have marked LGBTQIA+ characters for decades.

The way Viviane deals with prejudice sums up this proposition. In one of the scenes that resonated, the character responds to a transphobic attack by returning the discomfort to those who generated it.