Indianapolis knows Teresa Reynolds primarily as a singer, performing pop, R&B and soul with her band Teresa Reynolds and the Slicktones.
But Reynolds’ first love was theater — and she gets to bring together both art forms in an original musical for the Indianapolis Black Theatre Company’s 2026 Indy Black Solo Fest.
In the show “Facing It Face to Face with Dollface,” Reynolds will take the stage as a cocktail waitress named Dollface. She created the character while working as an actor in New York City on the immersive theatre production “Sleep No More.” Indy Black Solo Fest runs Jan. 31-Feb. 1 at the District Theatre.
If you go
“Facing It Face to Face with Dollface”
Part of Indy Black Solo Fest
🗓️ 6:15 p.m. Jan. 31 and Feb. 1
📍 The District Theatre, 627 Massachusetts Ave.
🎟️ $18-28
Backed by her real-life band the Slicktones, Reynolds will pay tribute to the music of Indianapolis legend Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds, all while staying in character as Dollface.
“In my family, we love Babyface,” Reynolds said. “The man has written about the entire spectrum of human emotion and situations. So I just combed through the catalog and found songs that helped me tell my story. It really came together, and I thought, ‘How perfect is that? Dollface and Babyface.’”
Growing up, Reynolds said, her taste in music was shaped by her father’s jazz record collection and what she heard on MTV.
Although she showed glimpses of her singing prowess as a youngster, Reynolds stayed focused on theater throughout her childhood and into her early adult years.
“I never sang in front of anybody until I did the school play in the second grade, and I sang ‘Part of Your World’ as The Little Mermaid,” Reynolds said. “My mom was like, ‘Wait a minute. You can sing?’ But I still wasn’t really doing it actively. I was dead set on being an actor, and that’s what I did.”
The Broad Ripple High School graduate would go on to get a theater degree from Ball State University before moving to New York City in 2003 to pursue a career.
“In New York City, you take all the different opportunities,” she said. “They may not make sense, but you just kind of piece together your life and your artistry.”
One of those opportunities was singing with well-known New York City figure David Ippolito in Central Park.
“I really cut my teeth in Central Park singing with him for more than 10 years in front of anywhere from a couple hundred to a couple thousand people on Saturdays,” Reynolds said.
Another standout opportunity that came her way while in New York City was singing backup vocals for Gloria Gaynor, best known for the 1978 disco hit, “I Will Survive.”
“My first gig with her was at the Count Basie Theater, and the Village People also performed,” Reynolds said. “I was just like, ’This is so crazy that I’m on this gig right now.’ The second gig was in Argentina in front of 2,000 people, so that was really amazing.”
Reynolds moved back to Indianapolis with her husband in 2018, with plans to start a family. Since returning home, she has started the band Teresa Reynolds and the Slicktones.
Teresa Reynolds and the Slicktones released its debut album, “The Postal Recording Sessions,” in 2023, and regularly play at venues all across town.
Reynolds was also named a 2022-2023 Creative Renewal Arts Fellow and one of Indy Maven’s 2023 Women to Watch.
“It’s proven itself to be the right move for us,” Reynolds said of her family’s relocation to Indianapolis. “Every scene has its pros and cons. But in general, the Indianapolis scene is really collaborative with a lot of people working to uplift each other.”
Reflecting on her growth as a musician, Reynolds is grateful to her brother TJ Reynolds, a fixture of Indy’s hip-hop community, who recently moved to Massachusetts.
“Honestly, I don’t know that I would have my singing career in the same way that I have it without TJ breaking the mold,” Reynolds said. “He was the second born — I’m the third. My oldest brother is a bookkeeper. So it was TJ who was doing a lot of the creative endeavors that allowed me the opportunity.”
Looking ahead to 2026, Reynolds said to expect a whole lot more from her and the band.
“I feel like 2026 is going to be a good year for me because I’ve just been grinding and working really hard,” she said.
See Reynolds in “Facing It Face to Face with Dollface” as part of the 2026 Indy Black Solo Fest on Jan. 31 and Feb. 1 at the District Theatre.
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Seth Johnson is a Mirror Indy freelance contributor. You can reach him at seth.johnson4291@gmail.com.
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