Girl Dolls:
The American Musical
Join doll enthusiasts and certified 90s kids Jackie Soro and Pax Ressler as they rifle through their confidential childhood toy chests in GIRL DOLLS: The American Musical!
GIRL DOLLS is part tea party, part identity crisis—a deep dive into our country’s favorite doll franchise in search of the stories that got left out of the dollhouse. Through original songs, nostalgic PowerPoints, and serious research™ disguised as musical comedy, Jackie, Pax, and an all-star band rip open the seams of American girlhood to ask: What does your favorite doll reveal about your childhood trauma? Is Samantha Parkington a sleeper agent for the American Project? And most importantly: When everything else about America feels awful, why can’t we let go of their tiny doll hands? Bring your doll, and come ready to laugh, cry, and cringe our collective way down memory lane!
Photo by Kenzi Crash
Photo by Kenzi Crash
World Premiere
May 2026 at FringeArts (Philadelphia)
ARTISTIC/CREATIVE TEAM
Director: MK Tuomanen
Music Director: Pax Ressler
Producer: Carlos Diaz Stoop
Production Manager: Taylor Jedlinski
Production Coordinator: CD Kincade
Sound Designer: Natali Merrill
Lighting Designer: Krista Smith
Scenic and Props Designer: Chris Haig
Set Built by: Philadelphia Scenic Works
Projection Designer: Taj Rauch
Costume Designer: Rebecca Kanach
Video Content Creator: Nia Benjamin
Musical Consultant: Justin Yoder
Additional Projection Design: Jackie Soro
Musicians
Bass: Mel Hsu
Guitar: Corinne Kite-Dean
Percussion: Mel Regn
GIRL DOLLS was supported by The Bearded Ladies Cabaret with multiple development residencies, with additional support from Theater Exile’s Studio X-hibition series.
GIRL DOLLS was made possible with support from the Cushman Foundation, Arthur M. Kaplan & Duane Perry, and a Leeway Foundation Window of Opportunity Grant, and with the generous support of Colin Likens, Sarah & Brad Marshall, Kate Poole, Mary Alice & Gerald Ressler, and more.