I have never been entirely comfortable talking about vaginas, let alone saying the word, which as a woman is kind of an odd concept. While I have a vagina, I think for most of my life I’ve used just about every other word but vagina to describe it. For socio-political/cultural reasons that we don’t have time to delve into at this moment, many children are taught from a young age that it’s not okay to discuss, look, touch, or experience their vaginas and penises. They’re taught that somehow, the body that they have, the body that they have no control over (in the sense of what a body inherently is—an archetype that has been replicated over and over for thousands of years), is shameful or embarrassing or so private that no one can even think about it. This, of course, gets carried over into adulthood. What I find more shameful than having a strange body part is that many adults can’t even seem to say the words “vagina” or “penis” without either laughing or wincing.
It wasn’t until a group of strong, intelligent women in town threw around the idea of performing The Vagina Monologues, that I began taking heed, as well as ownership of my femininity in a more serious, thoughtful way. The Vagina Monologues is an episodic play written by Eve Ensler and has been staged nationally and internationally since 1996. Words from the first page of the play stick out in my mind as the ultimate definition of how the play came to be: “We were worried about what we think about vaginas, and even more worried that we don’t think about them.”
The play is made up of monologues that deal with aspects of the feminine experience, touching on matters such as sex, love, rape, menstruation, orgasm, and birth. Some monologues are humorous and others tragic. A recurring theme throughout the piece is the vagina as a tool for female empowerment, and the ultimate embodiment of individuality. I’d heard of the play before, but never read it, let alone considered that I would get the chance to be a part of such a diverse and powerful performance piece.
While the play is frequently performed as reader’s theater, we have opted to combine the reader’s theater experience with memorization and acting out the monologues according to each cast member’s preference. There will be two performances at the Tin Shed Theater: one at 7 p.m. on Friday, February 13 and another on Saturday, February 14 at 5:30 p.m.
If you would like to be involved with stage décor, or general support, contact Francesca Claverie at (760) 996-0893 or aclaver@gmail.com.