[2][4][5][6] Alvarez grew up with the arts in his family: his grandmother was an opera singer in Cuba, while his father played music in a band in Puerto Rico, his mother was a ballerina,[2][7] and his three sisters all performed in the Miami City Ballet.

[8] Alvarez originally enrolled at Florida State University as a Creative Writing major, but applied to the fine arts program after a positive experience in the School of Theatre.

[3][8] While attending Juilliard, Alvarez trained at the Chautauqua Theater Company, appearing as Bernard in Death of a Salesman and Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream in 2008.

[10] [11] Alvarez portrayed the titular character in Brain Trust Production's The Tragedie of Cardenio at the 2010 Midtown International Theatre Festival, for which he won the award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Play.

[12] After graduating from school, Alvarez performed in regional theater, landing his first professional acting role in a national tour production of Ramona Quimby, based on the popular children's book series.

[6] He later performed in the Actors Theatre of Louisville's 2013 production of The Whipping Man, where he portrayed Caleb, a wounded Jewish Confederate soldier in the American Civil War.

[8] In 2010, his performance in The Tragedie of Cardenio by Ben Bartolone earned him the Midtown International Theatre Festival's award for "Outstanding Lead Actor in a Play".