The Vagina Monologues

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The Vagina Monologues is an Obie Award-winning episodic play written by Eve Ensler which premiered Off-Broadway in 1996. Ensler originally starred in the production, playing all the various women who share their views about their vaginas with the audience; when she left the play it was recast with three celebrity monologists. The production has been staged internationally, and a television version featuring Ensler was produced by cable TV channel HBO.

Contents

[edit] Plot summary

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

The Vagina Monologues is made up of a varying number of monologues read by a varying number of women (initially, Eve Ensler performed every monologue herself, with subsequent performances featuring three actresses, and more recent versions featuring a different actress for every role). Every monologue somehow relates to the vagina, be it through sex, love, rape, menstruation, mutilation, masturbation, birth, orgasm, the variety of names for the vagina, or simply as a physical aspect of the female body. A recurring theme throughout the piece is the vagina as a tool of female empowerment, and the ultimate embodiment of individuality. Some monologues include:

  • I Was Twelve, My Mother Slapped Me: a chorus describing many young women's and girls' first menstrual period.
  • My Angry Vagina, in which a woman humorously rants about injustices wrought against the vagina, such as tampons, douches, and the tools used by OB/GYNs
  • My Vagina Was My Village, a monologue compiled from the testimonies of Bosnian women subjected to rape camps.
  • The Little Coochie Snorcher That Could, in which a woman recalls memories of traumatic sexual experiences in her childhood and a self-described "positive healing" sexual experience in her adolescent years with an older woman. In the original version, she is 13, but later versions would change her age to 16. This particular skit has sparked numerous controversies and criticisms due to its content (see below).
  • The Woman Who Loved to Make Vaginas Happy, in which a dominatrix for women discusses the intriguing details of her career and her love of giving women pleasure. In several performances it often comes at the end of the play, literally climaxing with a vocal demonstration of a "triple orgasm."
  • Because He Liked to Look At It, in which a woman describes how she came to love her vagina because of a sexual experience with a man who was in awe of vaginas.
  • I Was There In The Room, a monologue in which Eve Ensler describes the birth of her granddaughter.

Every year a new monologue is added to highlight a current issue affecting women around the world. In 2003, for example, a skit was made concerning the plight of women in Afghanistan under Taliban rule.

Spoilers end here.

[edit] History

Eve Ensler wrote the first draft of the monologues in 1996 (there have been several revisions since) following interviews she conducted with 200 women about their views on sex, relationships, and violence against women. The interviews began as casual conversations with her friends, who then brought up anecdotes they themselves had been told by other friends; this began a continuing chain of referrals. In an interview with women.com, Ensler said that her fascination with vaginas began because of "growing up in a violent society." [1] "Women's empowerment is deeply connected to their sexuality." She also stated, "I'm obsessed with women being violated and raped, and with incest. All of these things are deeply connected to our vaginas."

Ensler wrote the piece to "celebrate the vagina," which is described in one monologue as being superior to the penis because it contains the clitoris, which the monologues describe as the only body part in existence that has the sole purpose of giving pleasure. Ensler sees the vagina as being a tool of empowerment through which women can achieve total femininity and individuality. She claims inspiration for the piece came from Tina Turner: "I love Tina Turner. She's a woman who fully inhabits her vagina." [2] Ensler states that in 1998, the purpose of the piece changed from a celebration of vaginas and femininity to a movement to stop violence against women.

The first performance of the play was in the basement of the Cornelia Street Café in New York, New York in 1996. The play gained popularity through a word of mouth campaign that culminated with a performance at Madison Square Garden in 2001, which featured Melissa Etheridge and Whoopi Goldberg performing segments of the play.

[edit] V-Day

The Vagina Monologues are the cornerstone of the V-Day movement, whose participants stage benefit performances of the show worldwide each Valentine's Day. The "V" in V-Day stands for Valentine, Vagina, and Victory, linking love and respect for women to ending violence against women and girls. The proceeds from these performances go to programs that assist victims of domestic violence.

V-Day has raised (and donated) over $30 million dollars and exists in 81 different countries. The organization has worked directly with women in regions like Cairo, Kenya and the Pine Ridge Reservation to build safe houses and support political resistance.

Camille Paglia has criticized V-Day as "turning Valentine's Day, the one holiday celebrating romantic harmony between the sexes, into a grisly memento mori of violence against women". [3]

[edit] Criticism of The Vagina Monologues

[edit] Feminist criticism

The Vagina Monologues has been criticized by a number of people in the pro-sex feminist, gender egalitarian, and individualist feminist movements. Pro-sex feminist Betty Dodson, author of several books about female sexuality, saw the play as having a negative and restrictive view of sexuality and an anti-male bias [4]. She called the play a blast of hatred at men and heterosexuality. Individualist feminist Wendy McElroy shared many of Dodson's views [5] [6].

Contentious elements of the play include:

  • the amount of attention given to brutal sexual encounters compared with consensual or harmonious sexual encounters;
  • negative portrayal of male-female sexual relationships;
  • In "The Little Coochie Snorcher that Could", a lesbian encounter between a very young woman (13 originally, 16 in revised versions) and a mature woman uses the line: "If it was rape, it was good rape." This section has been excised from recent performances. Warnings have been issued by the copyright holder that using the line "It was good rape" could lead to legal action. The scene also mentions the older woman giving alcohol to the underaged girl. Many have criticized this for portraying statutory rape by a lesbian in a positive light.

[edit] Social conservative criticism

The play has also been criticized by social conservatives, such as the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property. The ASDTFP denounced it as "a piece replete with sexual encounters, lust, graphic descriptions of masturbation and lesbian behavior" [7], urging students and parents to protest. As a result of ASDTFP protests, performances were canceled at sixteen Catholic colleges. Recently, Saint Louis University banned the 2006 production, claiming the yearly event was getting to be "redundant."

Several performances of the play had also been banned by municipal authorities within the People's Republic of China.

[edit] The Case of Robert Swope

In 2000, Robert Swope, a conservative contributor to the Georgetown university newspaper, The Hoya, wrote an article critical of the play. He pointed out the contradiction between V-Day promoting awareness of rape, while using scenes such as "The Little Coochie Snorcher That Could", where a young woman describes a "good rape" by an older woman. Outcry from the play's supporters resulted in Swope's being fired from the staff of the Hoya, before the piece was even run. Swope had previously criticized the play in an article he wrote entitled "Georgetown Women's Center: Indispensable Asset or Improper Expenditure?". His termination received editorial coverage in The Wall Street Journal, Salon.com, National Review, The Atlantic Monthly, The Washington Times, and the Weekly Standard. [8] Due to the ensuing outcry Eve Ensler's "V-Day" organization has not allowed the monologue depicting the 13-year old girl's encounter as a "good rape" to be performed and has threatened to sue student groups that did so.

[edit] U.S. Performances

The Vagina Monologues is performed annually to bring attention to V-Day at many community centers and colleges. Small colleges often make it a practice to perform a production of the Monologues every year. Student involvement and awareness are key to making this a success. The performances generally benefit rape crisis centers and similar resource centers for women.

Actresses

[edit] Canadian Performances

Actresses:

Note: A production in Ottawa in 2006 included Senators Lillian Dyck and Nancy Ruth in the cast.

[edit] Performances in Other Countries

The Vagina Monologues has been performed in 76 countries.[citation needed] Some details below:

[edit] Albania

  • Directed by Altin Basha, The Vagina Monologues has been playing in Albania since 2002.First time performance appeared on stage at "House Of Arts" (Tirana) on February 14, 2002.

Actresses:

  • Eriona Kakeli
  • Olta Daku
  • Nigda Dako

[edit] Brazil

Actresses

  • Betina Viany
  • Bia Nunnes
  • Cissa Guimarães
  • Cláudia Rodrigues
  • Fafy Siqueira
  • Lúcia Veríssimo
  • Mara Manzan
  • Tânia Alves
  • Totia Meireles
  • Vera Setta (the producer in Brazil and the mother of actress Morena Baccarin)
  • Zezé Polessa

[edit] Colombia

Director: Fanny Mikey

Actresses:

  • Vicky Hernández
  • Fabiana Medina
  • Marcela Gallego
  • Victoria Góngora
  • Ana María Kamper
  • Marcela Carvajal
  • Diana Angel

[edit] Dominican Republic

Actresses:

  • Ivonne Beras, Yamile Shécker, Elvira Taveras

[edit] Ecuador

Actresses:

  • Martha Ormaza, Elena Torres, Juana Guarderas

[edit] France

Actresses:

[edit] Hungary

Actresses:

  • Fullajtár Andrea, Létay Dóra, Zarnóczay Gizi, Tóth Anita, Gryllus Dorka
  • Xantus Barbara, Dévényi Ildikó, Nyertes Zsuzsa

Note: It has been playing in Hungary since 2002 by two different troupes, one in the capital, Budapest in the "Thalia Theatre", and the other troupe travelling the country.

[edit] India

The Vagina Monologues has been playing in India since 2003 and is produced by Poor-box productions. It has been given an Indian twist with a story about an elderly Parsi woman and a young Maharashtrian woman.

It was banned in the South-Indian city of Chennai in 2004.

The play may be translated into Hindi and performed in January 2007.

Actresses:

  • Dolly Thakore, Avantika Akerkar, Jayati Bhatia, Sonali Sachdev, Mahabanoo Mody-Kotwal
  • Jane Fonda and Marisa Tomei performed with the troupe around International Women's day in 2004 and toured Mumbai and Delhi

[edit] Indonesia

The Vagina Monologues was translated into Bahasa Indonesia by Gracia D. Adiningsih and was adapted by Jajang C. Noer and Nursyahbani Katjasungkana, who is also an MP in Indonesia.

The Monologue was performed for the first time in Indonesia on March 8, 2002 in Jakarta, as part of the Women's Day celebration. It was staged at the Taman Ismail Marzuki, Jakarta Cultural Center. Some performers were having doubt about the performance because the theme might be considered taboo and sensitive by some people in that country.

The performance was repeated in Yogyakarta on March 31-April 1, 2004 and at the Cultural Center of Bengkulu, Sumatra on August 19, 2004.

[edit] Actresses

The Vagina Monologues was performed by Indonesian actresses such as Sarah Azharai, Niniek L. Karim, Devi Permatasari, Cindy Fatika, Eno Lerian, Rima Melati, Jajang C. Noer, Nursyahbani Katjasungkana, Ratna Riantiarno, Ria Irawan Wulan Guritno, Rachel Maryam, Cornelia Agatha, etc.

[edit] Japan

Actresses:

  • Shungiku Uchida
  • Naoko Nozawa
  • Chizuru Azuma

[edit] Kenya

Actresses:

  • Mumbi Kaigwa brought The Vagina Monologues to Kenya where it opened on the 23rd of March 2003 for the first time in Africa.
  • Lorna Irungu

[edit] Mexico

The Vagina Monologues in Mexico opened on October 19, 2000, and in October 26, 2006 it celebrated its 3,600th performance. It is the only theatrical event in Mexico, which constantly presents 10 performances a week in Mexico City, on top of the touring versions reaching almost a hundred towns in the country. Its five venues in the capital have been: Nuevo Teatro Sala Chopin; Teatro Gran Meliá; Teatro del Hotel NH; Centro Cultural San Ángel; and Nuevo Teatro del Hotel NH. The producers are OCESA and Morris Gilbert, and has been translated into Spanish by Susana Moscatel and Erick Merino.

Director: Abby Epstein

Actresses:

  • Sofía Álvarez
  • Lilia Aragón
  • Pilar Boliver
  • Ana Karina Guevara
  • Andrea Legarreta
  • Anabel Ochoa
  • Adriana Roel
  • Jana Raluy
  • Stephanie Salas

Note: Since it opened, over 60 women: actors, communicators, singers, sexologists, journalists, dancers, political and social activists have performed in the Mexican production.

[edit] Russia

Director: Joel Lehtonen

Actresses:

  • Vera Voronkova
  • Anna Galinova
  • Ekaterina Konisevich

[edit] South Korea

Actress:

  • Jang Yeong Nam

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

[edit] The television production

[edit] Criticism

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