She's an astronaut, a figure skater and a presidential candidate; Latina, African American and Asian. She saves the world in stilettos and in her spare time hits the malls and beaches by way of pink convertible.

She's Barbie, one of this century's most potent and detrimental symbols of femininity, and she's about to get down and dirty with her tall, blonde self.

American Doll, a play that explores the Barbie doll as a feminist icon, will be performed tonight as part Social Justice Action Month, which continues until the end of October.

The play is based on Denise Duhamel's Kinky, a poetry anthology published in 1997 that asks, "What if Barbie attempted to fit into the real world?" Last spring, she gave a lecture at Penn State, providing the inspiration and the permission to produce a theatrical adaptation of her work.

"American Doll criticizes the image of femininity that Barbie gives to young girls, but at the same time, by giving Barbie a persona and making her a real woman, you can't help but to respect her struggles, at least in a humorous way," director Monica Antonazzo (senior-women's studies) said. "It also combats the idea that one has to be any kind of particular physical description to be a feminist, because Barbie is, in the end, portrayed to be a strong person."

In the process of reaching that conclusion, a cast of seven performs a series of absurd and ironic scenes, including Barbie at group therapy, G.I. Joe trying to persuade Barbie to let loose on a killing spree and Barbie and Ken lamenting that they lack the necessary body parts to consummate their four-decade-long romance.

"The play talks about a lot of issues, sexuality, body image and relationships with your parents and the people around you," co-director Tatiana Diaz (senior-political science) said.

The cast includes Natalie Melle McCabe (freshman-theatre arts) as Hippie Barbie, who said that having male cast member Bob Graybill (junior-history) portray a female doll challenges gender stereotypes. Loren Heinbach (freshman-biobehavioral health), who performs as Schoolgirl Barbie, said her scenes with Dr. Midge deconstruct sexuality, body image, inequality and violence against women.

Since its 1959 debut, the Barbie doll has taken over 600 forms. Though Barbie's marketing has become a bit more feminist friendly, Antonazzo said the doll's image and implications have remained stagnant.

"There are all these different ethnicities of Barbies, but they all look the same," Antonazzo said. "Little girls, like grown men, like variety as long as it's pretty."