See Exclusive Portraits From Doll Invasion, the Heavenly Trans Takeover of Fire Island

At roughly 4 p.m. on Saturday, a boat appeared like a mirage on the waters of the Great South Bay. There they were, the hosts of the second annual Doll Invasion, packed onto a water taxi that was slowly approaching the dock of the Fire Island Pines mansion Reflections. A throng of transsexuals crowded onto the sand, waiting to welcome our royalty, which included G.L.I.T.S. founder Ceyenne Doroshow, Horse Barbie author Geena Rocero, organizer and activist Raquel Willis, and many more. We had been promised that this party would include an opening ceremony we wouldn’t want to miss — and it certainly delivered.

The arrival spectacle was a reference to the Invasion of the Pines, a Fourth of July tradition wherein drag artists and drag newbies alike “invade” the Pines on a ferry, after outgrowing the water taxi from Invasions of yore. That tradition, like so much of gay culture, began with a drag queen who was fed up. In 1976, a Cherry Grove resident named Teri Warren was refused service to a restaurant in the Pines — historically a wealthier, more conservative neighborhood on the gay vacation hotspot — because she was dressed in drag. So on the Fourth of July, Warren and her friends donned their wigs and hopped on a water taxi to the Pines in protest.

Fran Tirado, the founder of Doll Invasion, and Them’s new executive editor, told me that Doll Invasion “is a radical invitation of trans people to descend on the island.”

“It’s not enough to say ‘We’re trans-inclusive!’ or ‘Here’s a party for trans people!’” she said. “You have to say, ‘Yes, this party is free for you and you only, we have free buses, we have detailed instructions on how to use public transportation, we are coordinating ferry rides to ensure trans people ride together, we are offering free travel vouchers to those with critical need.’”

Doll Invasion, as Tirado makes clear, is so much more than a rented house. The party’s organizers even bring in their own staff, from door to bar to security, to ensure “that no bad vibes get inside.”

And the vibes were, as they say, immaculate. The day-long affair included shows from some of the finest in Brooklyn drag’s scene, like Charlene Incarnate and Chiquitita. Free joints from queer weed brand Flamer could be found in almost everyone’s hands, often alongside a drink that only cost a suggested donation. The pool deck was constantly crowded with trans people dancing to tunes spun by Macy Rodman, Ariel Zetina and, most iconically, Lina Bradford, the legendary Club Kid and former Pines mainstay DJ.

Bradford “transformed the island’s nightlife, its flow, its economy, everything,” Tirado told me, but these days, drawing her to Fire Island is a feat. Aside from a one-off 70th anniversary event, she hadn’t DJed on the island for a decade, having intentionally closed that chapter in her life; she won’t even stay overnight. Despite that, she spun a truly life-changing set for the girls, during which she played a remix of “Dreams” by Fleetwood Mac, took this writer’s hand, and promised that she’d come back anytime for us.

The party represented a rarefied kind of decadence that many trans people don’t often get to experience, and every trans person got in for free. But that still didn’t stop the event from raising tens of thousands of dollars for the nonprofits Queer|Art and Advocates for Trans Equality’s Education Fund. With a banner reading “ALL DOLLS GO TO HEAVEN” to honor the late trans icon and former Doll Invasion host Cecilia Gentili, and all sorts of hedonistic pleasure made accessible for all, Doll Invasion was perhaps the platonic ideal of what a trans party should be.

Bask in the angelic glory that is photographer Justin J. Wee’s portraits of Doll Invasion attendees and hosts, exclusively for Them, many of whom spoke with us about the magic of this annual event.

Raquel Willis, organizer and author

“Doll Invasion is so important because the dolls are the architects of so much of our culture, but especially queer and trans culture. This is an opportunity for us to take up space in a space where we have historically been sidelined and devalued. We have dolls of every body type, of every ability, of every color, of every level of glam or non-glam, here celebrating the fact that we continue to exist. We continue to thrive, and we continue to contribute to this world. This is a political moment, so for queer and trans people and femmes to take up space — especially when we are facing authoritarianism, when we are facing threats on our bodily autonomy and our self-determination — is a powerful, revolutionary thing.”

Jes Tom, comedian and actor

“I’ve only ever been on Fire Island, running mostly with cis faggots and doing cis faggot stuff. And in that version of Fire Island, I feel like there’s a very strict code of conduct, strict code of ethics and rules, and they’re actually very easy to follow and figure out. And so I’ve gotten really used to operating that way. Here at Doll Invasion, surrounded by trans people, I am tasked with being a real human being in a social setting on Fire Island, and frankly, I find it a little overwhelming.”

Charlene Incarnate, performer

On performing to “Macarena” at the event:

“‘Macarena’ is a trans feminism anthem, actually, about a woman who gets what she wants, who the boys can’t have, even though they all think she’s hot. It’s a Los Del Río song, so the English version is actually like a Hollywoodified, abridged version of a story of a woman whose man goes off to war, and has to find pleasure once he’s gone. I had no idea it was a polyamorous anthem. It’s a slut anthem, and that’s what makes it good for the Doll Invasion.”

Macy Rodman, singer-songwriter and comedian

“Doll Invasion is always a special experience because it is tailor-made for dolls to enjoy, which not only on Fire Island, but in general, is such a hard thing to find. The decadence is liberating, the lack of inhibitions is liberating. It encourages you to create something that is esoteric in a way that you couldn’t do anywhere else.”

Ceyenne Doroshow, G.L.I.T.S. founder and executive director

“I was apprehensive and scared. I haven’t been in community, and have been trying to remove myself from that for a while so I could heal, and I think I needed community. To come as a trans woman on this island and take it over in this way — it’s not only respectful, it’s what the other queers in Fire Island need to see, to know that we are people like your people, and we are having the most amazing time as community and family. A lot of us don’t even know each other, but look at the love in this space on an island that primarily does not host trans women. Here we are in this beautiful event with the dolls. It’s iconic. When we pulled up in a boat, I became emotional to witness all of this in 2024, at a time when we got to be scared for all our rights.

“What we’re doing is going to set precedents on this island. They can never forget it. The Invasion of the Dolls will give them hemorrhoids and headaches for decades to come, because they know around this time the invasion is coming. It’s what we need as a community. We’ve suffered a lot this year and we deserve our place. I think as trans women, as leaders, as people who take care of people, we have proved that we are iconic, and you can’t erase us. We’re here on any island. We don’t need an island. We don’t need this. New York belongs to us, and I think we are proving that here today, the beauty and love in this space, you can’t erase it.”

Esther Fallick, comedian, singer, and writer

“There was a feeling that I had to adopt early in my transition where I had to stop smiling at every passerby. That was something I always liked to do, and I had to kind of put a little wall up. But today, I’ve been making eye contact with everyone, and we have all been smiling the biggest smiles at each other when we make eye contact. I was here last year, too, and it was a lot of fun. But they have stepped it up this year in a big way.”

Justin J. Wee, photographer

“I think that the particular gaze that this event has is really, really unique in that it was formed for the dolls by the dolls. It’s not like a cis party organizer doing a day of trans shows or whatever. There was so much thought put into every detail of this. The choreography that went into that opening ceremony? There was a rehearsal for that at 11:30 [a.m.] today. This is a party that has been thrown for the dolls to enjoy themselves, and everyone has joined us to raise money. That is why this party is so phenomenal.”

See more portraits below: