Two areal theater groups are premiering original pieces in the Lehigh Valley region.

Touchstone Theatre presents “Language of Dolls,” March 5 to March 8 in the Soutside Bethlehem theater.

Truth and Light Media Productions, started by five singing siblings from Forks Township, will stage “Steel Hearts: The John Henry Musical,” March 6 to March 8 at Shawnee Playhouse, Shawnee on Delaware, Smithfield Township, Monroe County.

“Language of Dolls” is part of Touchstone’s “UnBound Year-Round,” its year-long reframing of “Festival Unbound.”

In “Language of Dolls,” written and performed by Lizzie Olesker, Peggy Pettitt and Louise Smith, three lifelong friends engage in conversations about identity and race, sparked by the discovery of a box of dolls.

In the play, three older women stay at a cabin in the woods to re-connect. There, they discover of an old box of dolls. Their findings spark difficult, highly-charged conversations that open new and unexpected terrain, including exploration of American history.

Over the course of one night, the three women eat, laugh, argue, dance, dream and share their unexpected stories. They question how their racial and social identities were formed, and how their personal histories have been shaped and influenced. This culminates in the discovery of each of their inner “soul” dolls, revealing a part of themselves they may have forgotten or perhaps never known. Through their connected encounter with one another, they find the restorative power of friendship and its true ability to transform.

“After forty-plus years of knowing one another, we intentionally began a dialogue about our identities as one Black woman and two white women,” says Pettitt.

“In 2022, we saw the exhibit ‘Black Dolls’ at the New York Historical and it profoundly affected the direction of our work,” Pettitt says.

“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,” says Pettitt.

Following each performance, audience members can take part in a guided discussion related to the issues and questions that the piece raises such as ‘What messages around race have we received from the time we were born and carried throughout our lives?‘ and ‘How does our interconnectivity as friends help us resist rigid categorizations?’

The women will host a “Storycircle Workshop,” 2 p.m. March 7, Touchstone Theatre. Using a methodology first used by John O’Neal of the Free Southern Theater, participants will be invited to share personal stories and to create theatrical moments from real-life narratives. The workshop is free and open to the public, but space is limited. To register: 610-867-1689.

The March 5 performance is Pay-What-You-Will.

“Language of Dolls,” 8 p.m. March, 5, 6, 7; 2 p.m. March 8, Touchstone Theatre, 321 E. Fourth St., Bethlehem. 610-867-1689, http://www.touchstone.org/

Sing for America, made up of the Gilbert family, has written and composed its first musical, “Steel Hearts: The John Henry Musical.”

Taryn Gilbert says the show was inspired by the American folk hero John Henry, immortalized in a classic folk song, who was a steel driver on the railroad and challenged a steam-powered rock drill, that was replacing workers.

Set in the South, “Steel Hearts” begins with John Henry’s parents (Ian Holmes, Taryn Gilbert), who are born into slavery. After the Emancipation Proclamation, John Henry (Jorne Gilbert) is a freed man who finds work laying down rail for the railroad. When the steam-powered rock drill threatens to take away the steel drivers’ jobs, Henry stands up against overwhelming odds.

Says Taryn Gilbert, “The show turns a familiar folktale into a moving live musical about work ethic, perseverance and what it means to build a life with purpose. It’s a story about race, but also about shared humanity, and the belief that effort and integrity still matter.”

The score is inspired by Gospel music and includes songs such as “The Ballad of John Henry,” “Lady of Steel” and “Morning in America.”

The cast includes Shauna Cheatham, Tasia Gilbert, Max Albert, Jewel Gilbert, Gabriel Soto and Abraham Pla.

Sing for America was started in 2003, by sisters Taryn, Tasia and Teara Gilbert and brothers Jewel and Jorne Gilbert to raise money for local causes. The siblings perform in, direct, choreograph and do costume and set design for their shows.

“Steel Hearts: The John Henry Musical,” 7 p.m. March 6; 2 p.m., 7 p.m. March 7; 2 p.m. March 8, Truth and Light Media Productions, Shawnee Playhouse, 552 River Road, Shawnee on Delaware. 610-730-39313, https://www.shawneeplayhouse.org/copy-of-tickets

“Curtain Rises” is a column about the theater, stage shows, the actors in them and the directors and artists who make them happen. To request coverage, email: Paul Willistein, Focus editor, pwillistein@tnonline.com