EVENTS

Language of Dolls is a collaborative theater piece that questions the origins of racism and identity by Lizzie Olesker, Peggy Pettitt, and Louise Smith. Three friends come to a cabin in the woods and discover a box of old dolls. They stay at the table through difficult, highly charged conversations that open onto new and unexpected terrain.

The Background:
We are three older women theater artists and after forty-plus years of knowing one another, we intentionally began a dialogue about our identities as one Black woman and two white women. In 2022, we saw the exhibit “Black Dolls” at The New York Historical and it profoundly affected the direction of our work. The dolls on display haunted and spoke to us in their silent presence. Their hidden histories inspired us to create our own “soul dolls” from found materials, discovering how each one possesses their own language of poetic possibility. Dolls become puppets and throughout the piece we engage with their stories as our ancestors and ourselves. Awkward moments in communication between friends create subtle humor, as well as the need for humility as we stay in front of some of the questions that we are all facing.

Language of Dolls was developed at an artists’ residency at Blue Mountain Center, Shantigar Foundation, the Orchard Project and was presented at the Foundry Theater in Yellow Springs, Ohio.

WHAT TO EXPECT

RUN TIME: 80 minutes with no intermission.

POST-PERFORMANCE: Following each performance, audience members are invited to participate in a guided discussion related to the issues and questions that the piece raises for them personally and for their community.

ACCESSIBILITY INFORMATION: Accessible seating and a non-gendered, ADA accessible bathroom available. Touchstone strives to create an environment where all members of our community feel welcome. Please contact (610) 867-1689 or via email at touchstone@touchstone.org to request accessibility accommodations in advance.

[Image description: Three women sit around a table covered in a white table cloth. They all look toward the camera, and are wearing casual, comfortable clothes. Each of the women holds up a doll that shares several physical characteristics with themself. Jutting into the frame from the righthand side and crossing above their heads is a long thin tree branch. Behind them is a white projector screen and a maroon colored wall.]