The Vagina Monologues. The name alone sometimes gets strange looks and apprehensive comments. I must admit that before I came to Bowdoin, I had never even heard of The Vagina Monologues, let alone thought that I would ever participate in the show. However, all of that changed after I saw last year’s performance and my perception was forever altered. After hearing the various monologues and having my eyes opened to the incredible world of the V-Day organization, I knew that I wanted to participate in The Vagina Monologues. This year as auditions rolled around, I grew anxious, thinking that maybe this wasn’t something I could do after all. However, I auditioned, received a fantastic part, and my life changed from the entire experience.
The Vagina Monologues is a collection of stories recorded by award winning playwright Even Ensler. Ensler interviewed over two hundred women, translated their stories, and compiled these stories into an exceptional performance. The V-Day organization is a global activist movement that strives to end violence against women and girls. V-Day is a force that puts on events to increase awareness, raise money, and revitalize the spirit of existing anti-violence organizations. V-Day generates broader attention regarding the fight to stop violence against women and girls, including rape, battery, incest, female genital mutilation, and sex slavery world wide. Each year V-Day works to support productions of The Vagina Monologues all over the world. Since the play was written, it has been translated into 48 languages and has been performed in 140 countries worldwide[1].
This year 33 women chose to play a role in this extraordinary show. When we showed up to the first read through, we were strangers to one another, many of us never even having spoken or seen each other before. But over the course of a month, we formed a unique boned, an unspoken union that was founded on the feelings and issues addressed in the show. The mission to end violence against women and girls united us all. Each of us had very different initial reasons for participating in the show, but one underlying theme consistently persisted: to raise awareness for the V-Day mission and to promote participation in the fight to end violence against women worldwide. The relationships I created with each of these women were incredible and the experience was unforgettable. Performing in The Vagina Monologues was empowering and made me feel as though I was truly making a difference. I know that this is just one effort, created by a group of compassionate women on the Bowdoin College campus, but I truly believe that the long-term effects of the V-Day message are endless. I encourage all women and men to educate themselves about the V-Day mission. I urge all Bowdoin women to participate in future performances of The Vagina Monologues because I know they will have an incredible experience.
For more information visit www.vday.org
Photos:
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