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Crowd wowed by touching ‘Vagina’
BY AYOFEMI KIRBY
STAFF WRITER
Women and men of all ages
waited in line outside Gerrard
Hall on Friday and Saturday night
to hear monologues about women
and their vaginas.
A cast of 13 presented “The
Vagina Monologues” to two sold
out audiences those nights. The
shows benefited the Carolina V-
Day initiative, a campus group
dedicated to preserving women’s
rights that is an extension of the
national organization.
When the doors opened, patrons
scrambled to find and save seats for
others who wanted to buy tickets
at the door. They soon realized the
seats would go to those lucky enough
to purchase tickets in advance.
Group brings kids’ stories to life
BY MELODY GUYTON
STAFF WRITER
Wide grins and giggles abound
ed at a Chapel Hill elementary
school Friday afternoon when a
Charlotte-based theatre company
acted out creative stories written
by six students.
Three actors and writing coaches
from Stage Works Theatre visited
Mel and Zora Rashkis Elementary
School for the second time this
school year to hold a program called
Imagination Express Part I\vo.
The program was sponsored
by the school’s Parent Teacher
Association.
Dawn Ruston, a representative
of the PTA, said the program has
been well-received.
“I think it’s a great way to plant
the seeds for writing,” she said. “It
makes writing fun for the kids.”
The students knew that the
company was returning to perform
Friday, but they did not know that
they would be watching the works
of their fellow classmates.
After the company’s visit in
October, students submitted sto
ries to the group. Six were selected
to be performed.
Stacey Izrailtyan, the mother of
one of the selected writers, David
Izrailtyan, 10, praised the program.
“It’s very exciting,” she said.
“David is not much into writing,
but for him, it’s going to be a very
good push in the right direction.”
Writing Coach Alicia Sowisdral
said the selected plays were chosen
because they incorporated the four
“CLAP” elements taught in October
and were detailed and cohesive.
The “CLAP” writing method
requires students to integrate char
acter, location, action and plot into
their writing.
Before each play was performed,
the writer was called on stage to be
given a certificate and to answer
questions about the play. The par
ents of each of the winning writ
ers were present, which was also a
surprise to the students.
Before performing each play,
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They all bought tickets to hear
about vaginas, a part of the female
anatomy so taboo and unmen
tionable in global society that it is
referred to by creative —and often,
vulgar synonyms more often
than its proper name.
“I really wanted people to hear
an honest portrayal about how
women feel about their vaginas,”
said senior Erica Robinson, events
coordinator for the Carolina V-Day
initiative. “Because usually when it
is portrayed, it’s not honest.”
“I think it’s something refresh
ing for women to hear that is hon
est and real,” she said. “Something
they can come together and con
nect to. I know I did.”
Every year on or around Feb.
14, productions of “The Vagina
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Alicia Sowisdral, a member of Charlotte's Stage Works Theatre troupe, acts among fourth- and fifth-grade
students Friday afternoon at Rashkis Elementary School. The group acted out six of the students' essays.
the actors asked for volunteers to
act out parts. One of the selected
volunteers, Brinklee Bailey, 10, said
she enjoyed the program.
“It’s fiin because they make bor
ing things really funny, like the play
about the history museum,” she
said. “I don’t really like history, but
I enjoyed the play.”
Jack Vozella, 11, wrote that
play, which was titled, “The
Museum,” based on a family visit
to Washington, D.C.
“I was happy when they per
formed my play,” he said. “I didn’t
think they were going to choose
mine.”
The plays ranged widely in sub
ject matter from bullies to cats
—and even a “pickle queen.”
“(The program) was helpful
because I had written some stories
before, but I feel more comfortable
now because I know how and when
to write,” David said.
News
Monologues” bring audiences
together for 21/2 hours in a recount
ing of sexual expression, self-discov
ery, sexual abuse and oppression in
open and uncensored dialogue.
At the beginning of the show,
the cast, dressed in jeans, bikinis,
skirts and shirts, marched through
the aisles of an anxious and excited
audience. Once they reached the
stage, they began to humorously
describe journeys of searching for
their vaginas and ended the scene
stating the names vaginas have
acquired through time.
Expressive monologues “Hair”
and “My Angry Vagina” received
thunderous laughter and cheers
from the audience, while those
recounting experiences of sexual
abuse ushered in a thick silence.
Morayo Orija, a writing coach,
said performing the stories is appeal
ing to both kids who are interested
in writing and those more interested
in public performance.
When the company visited the
school in October for Imagination
Express Part One, the coaches
worked with fourth- and fifth-grade
students to improve their writing
through the “CLAP” method.
Corina Rice, one of the coaches,
said they worked with the students
for five days. Each of the first four
days, they covered a different
aspect of “CLAP,” and on the last
day, they performed the plays that
the students had written.
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“I think that’s what it takes to get
people to embrace and acknowl
edge themselves,” said sophomore
Shalandra Macon, a member of
Voices for Planned Parenthood,
about the show’s candid content
V-Day, a nonprofit corpora
tion, gives college initiatives the
rights to produce “The Vagina
Monologues” at no cost after they
agree to donate proceeds from the
show to organizations dedicated to
protecting women’s rights.
This year, the proceeds will be
divided among the Orange County
Rape Crisis Center, the Family
Violence Protection Center and the
annual V-Day spotlight campaign.
Contact the AtCE Editor
at artsdesk@unc.edu.
After the company left, the stu
dents wrote stories that incorpo
rated the “CLAP” principles.
Each teacher then selected five of
the stories to submit to Stage Works,
and from those stories, the group
selected six to perform.
Jack’s mother, Julie Vozella,
said the Stage Works program is
especially beneficial for students
in North Carolina because of the
state writing test that students
must take.
“It’s positive reinforcement,” she
said.
Contact the City Editor
at citydesk@unc.edu.
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2005
Actors recount
their own tales
of womanhood
Reconnect with selves thanks to play
BY KATHY CHO
STAFF WRITER
All week long, the word
gleamed from one side of a Cube,
grabbing attention, inviting stares
“vagina.”
In the Pit, unabashed pink T
shirts read, “Vaginas Are Coming.”
“What we (tried) to do is put
ourselves out there in a ballsy
way no, in a vagina-y way,” said
Allison Garren, a senior political
science major. She directed and
acted in this year’s production of
“The Vagina Monologues.”
Eve Ensler’s show urges women
to think about, and talk about, their
vaginas. The message is that by
“reclaiming” the core of their sexu
ality and resisting the stigma that
shrouds it, women can empower
themselves in the fight against
violence.
For the 14 actors, the first task
was not only getting used to saying
the “V-word” but opening up about
its meaning to themselves. Garren,
as director, had to set an example.
“I reminded myself that, com
pared to what a lot of women go
through, like enduring a violent
relationship or an abusive family,
this is nothing,” she said.
Garren said she _grew up in a
small-town environment, resenting
her vagina because it was a place of
pain or discomfort.
She didn’t pay it much attention.
Neither did anyone else.
“It would be nice if we could cel
ebrate (a girl’s first period) as a pas
sage into womanhood, but it’s just,
‘OK, here are the tampons and the
pads, this is how you use ’em, good
luck,’” Garren said.
After seeing “The Vagina
Monologues” during her sopho
more year, she was eager to
embrace its message.
“Me and my vagina are on a bet
ter talking level,” she said. “We’ve
grown together.”
The play was also a turning point
for Erica Robinson. The senior
political science and journalism
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major was the event coordinator of
the Carolina V-Day Initiative and
performed the “My Short Skirt”
monologue in the play.
“I knew (my vagina was) there,
but I didn’t really want to think
about it,” she said.
“It was something I was dis
connected from. Then I saw (‘The
Vagina Monologues’) in my fresh
man year, and I saw all those con
nections being made. It resonated
with me because I am a woman.”
Her interest in women’s issues
was spurred from then on. She
eventually became co-chair
woman of Voices for Planned
Parenthood.
“If I don’t own my vagina, I allow
everyone around me to determine
it for me,” she said. “I can’t follow
those rules because they aren’t
structured to help me.”
Robinson,'who had felt “unsexu
al” and “disgusted” about her sexu
ality, now says, “This is my vagina,
and I love it.”
Libby Jeter, who graduated last
December, said she has always been
comfortable with her sexuality.
But acting in the play was still
a rich experience, as it let her con
nect with other women. She loved
sharing stories with her fellow
actors and the rare opportunity
to express herself “in a way that’s
sexual, intellectual and emotional
at the same time.”
The exchange wasn’t limited to
the actors due to the play’s inter
active nature. “You’re speaking
directly to the audience all the
time,” she said. “It’s exciting, but
also nerve-wracking.
“It’s interesting to express and
embrace (female sexuality), and
not just when you’re talking with
your friends,” Jeter said.
“You may not be able to relate
to a dominatrix or someone who’s
been under a burqa. But you can
relate to what it is to be a woman.”
Contact the Features Editor
atfeatures@unc.edu.
7