Metro Philadelphia
For anyone who ever spent hours flipping through a catalog of perfectly posed dolls, FringeArts is about to serve up a theatrical treat that is equal parts nostalgic, satirical, and soul-baring. ‘GIRL DOLLS: The American Musical‘ is a World Premiere production that cracks open America’s most iconic doll franchise to explore the complexities of girlhood, identity, and the stories we inherit.
Created and performed by Philadelphia artists Jackie Soro and Pax Ressler, and directed by MK Tuomanen, the musical blends sharp satire, cultural research, and 90s nostalgia into an irreverent, heartfelt theatrical experience.
“When I was a kid drooling over American Girl Doll catalogs, there were seven dolls available. Only one of them was Black, and she was an enslaved person—a child who was someone’s ‘property,’” says Soro. “We’ve been able to investigate how our childhoods didn’t fit the American stories we were fed through toys, television, and history class.”
Soro, a 2024 Independence Foundation Fellow whose ensemble work has earned five Barrymore Awards, joins forces with Barrymore-winning composer and F. Otto Haas Award finalist Ressler to crack open the toy chest of American girlhood. Backed by an all-star band, original songs, and nostalgic visuals, the duo asks: Who was centered in our childhoods? Who was left out? And why, when so many things about American identity feel fractured, can’t we let go of our doll’s tiny hands?
“This show contains the most intimate things I have shared onstage—the cringey, complicated, trans childhood stuff that even people close to me don’t really know about,” says Ressler. “My story and Jackie’s story are prisms for the audience to dissect their own childhoods—what dolls meant to them, whether they belong in American culture, and what they’re unpacking now as adults.
“In writing about dolls, we’ve learned that they allow us to talk about everything—that is, dolls show us ourselves.”
So grab your doll and come ready to laugh, cry, and cringe your collective way down memory lane.
Performances run May 9 to 17 at FringeArts. The show is recommended for ages 12 and older and is produced by The Bearded Ladies Cabaret in partnership with FringeArts. (Organizers note, it is not affiliated with Mattel or the American Girl brand.)
Tickets range from $15–$50, with ACCESS card discounts available. For more information, visit FringeArts.com