There are some things almost all women can relate to— like having a vagina.
The Vagina Monologues, a play that will be performed by female students and alumni at the University this weekend, plays on the fact that every woman has a vagina.
“It’s a conversation between all people about womanhood and what it means to have a vagina,” said Kelsey Klein, producer of the play and a senior at the University.
The show will take place in Olscamp 101 Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 4 p.m.
The play is made up of stories from real women about how they feel about their vaginas. The stories were revealed to author Eve Ensler in interviews and are now performed by various women around the world.
“There’s some monologues that are hilarious and there’s others that really reflect the realities of physical and sexual violence that women experience,” Klein said.
Feminist Organization Raising Consciousness and Empowerment, a student organization, is hosting the play. The organization has hosted it for several years, said Mary Krueger, the group’s adviser.
The show is about women finding a safe place, said senior Arielle Patty, the play’s director.
Ninety percent of the money from ticket sales will go to the Cocoon Shelter, a local women’s shelter. The remaining 10 percent will go to Ensler’s organization called V-Day, which is a global campaign to end violence against women, Klein said.
“It’s for women to show what we can do for other women,” Patty said.
Patty said part of the reason she wanted to do the show was because she has never felt like anything stood in her way in life and she wants everyone to feel that way.
“It just exposes everything that people who are women experience on this earth because they are women,” Patty said.
Approximately 24 people who identify themselves as women, acted, produced and directed the play, Klein said.
The play is really unique to the cast because every woman brings a different idea to the stage, Patty said.
“I tried to cast people that already fit into the character in the show,” Patty said. “I want it to be real women telling real stories.”
This year’s cast is larger than in recent years, Patty said.
“I wanted as many women as possible because I think this show is about community and sisterhood and women coming together,” she said.
Candace Roane, a freshman, is acting in the play and said she got involved by chance.
“I actually just randomly saw posters spur of the moment,” Roane said.
She hopes the play will empower women to love their bodies, she said.
“I feel like it’s a really powerful message that no one wants to talk about,” she said. “Vagina’s are great.”
This is the first year the show will be interpreted in American Sign Language, said Katie Franklin, senior and sign language interpreter for the show.
“Anyone who loves someone who has a vagina should see it,” Patty said. “Everyone I know with a vagina can relate to at least one thing in this show.”
