Vaginas: Still Controversial After All These Years

“Please don’t send me an ad that has the word ‘vagina’ in it. It offends me.”

As PR manager for Stone Soup theatre, I hadn’t intended on contributing anything other than the first blog entry, to introduce the purpose of the Vagina Monoblogs, as I thought it’d be more interesting to hear from the folks who were in rehearsal for it on a nightly basis. However, now that I’ve been hit with a couple interesting responses while marketing the piece, I can’t hold off any longer in weighing in with MY two cents.

A couple weeks ago, in attempting to contact our local GLBT newspaper and propose a story – after all, besides being about vaginas, the piece is about women of varying race, color, gender status, economic bracket, sexual orientation, as well as boasting a multi-ethnic, gender-diverse cast & crew…seems like a no-brainer to me. The editor, however, got really pissy with me as I tried to explain why this might make for a good story and grumbled something like, “…when is someone going to write a piece about men and THEIR genitalia?” which left me at a loss for words. What do you SAY to that? “Look out your window at the Space Needle”? He told me he meant gay men, and that the whole “women and their vaginas” thing had been overdone – what makes it relevant anymore?

I’m sorry, you call yourselves a “GLBT” newspaper, not a Gay Male newspaper – does the lesbian experience (which is included in the VM’s) not count as GLBT? Does the trans experience (also included, in this 10th Anniversary edition) not count as GLBT? That is to say nothing of bisexuals, who seem to be left out of the equation on a regular basis, the unicorns of the queer community.

In wearing my “actor” hat, I was part of the ensemble in Stone Soup’s last production of Vagina Monologues that ran for five months from 2004-2005 – I stepped in during the final month when another actor left due to other acting conflicts. I was kind of mercenary about the whole thing, really – I had seen Eve Ensler perform it back in 1998 in the Bullitt Cabaret at ACT and thought it was pretty great – but after the whole “celebrities doing V-day” every year, the spoofs on Saturday Night Live and the theatre community kind of scoffing at it as not “real” theatre, I wasn’t that interested in the content, thinking, as with the aforementioned editor of local paper, it wasn’t relevant anymore, had been done.

Several performances and sold-out audiences of newly-liberated women into my run, I had to rethink my cynical stance. Everyone in the arts at some point or other gives lip service to “changing the world” and “helping people”. Yet it’s these same artists that are flippantly calling The Vagina Monologues passé and overdone. Maybe as artists in the theatre community, we’re jaded and it really does seem irrelevant. However, the five months’ sold-out audiences of women mostly in the over-40 demographic back during the last run who are rallying together for this run and giving us healthy ticket sales before the run has even begun, would beg to differ. Do they not count as people we’re helping? To see older women in the audience crying tears of joy at finally being released from their own shame issues surrounding their genitals is a pretty powerful thing.

Take the quote at the beginning, received in response to an e-mail blast I sent out about the production. Do I quietly not respond and take her name off the mailing list, or instead offer her tickets to the production as someone who might truly benefit from experiencing it and as a result feel less offended both by the word and perhaps her own vagina?

And finally, who knew this “passe”, “overdone”, “irrelevant” piece of theatre would cause any controversy at all? It can only mean one thing…hatred of vaginas, whether directed inwardly towards ourselves or received outwardly from others is still alive and well, making this production still very much current, very much relevant, and very possibly changing at least some of our little corner of the world. And I haven’t even BEGUN to touch upon the whole theme of violence against women…

--Carolynne Wilcox

"Eve" Cast Haiku

I’ve written a haiku for each of the women in the “Eve” cast. I won’t disclose who is who (one is me, too)… but, I think they all speak in sincerity, and with compassion, understanding, and glorious respect abound.

I
Adjusted, not rough;
In terms of variety,
she is a diamond.

II
Breeze along… stop here!
This is your glorious time,
And YOU make it work.

III
Tempo. I sense you.
Unravel. You speak beauty.
Meet this: You and I.

IV
Inventive, your face
is clarity and allows
for me to let go.

V
Justify this, here.
You embody a splendor,
and it feels so neat.

More will come, I'm sure - though perhaps not in haiku form. I'll write again soon.

xo
Aiden

Calpurnia Addams

Been researching Calpurnia Addams in preparation for performing a piece based on her story in The Vagina Monologues. Anybody seen Soldier's Girl? Jesus, I will never understand the depths of some people's hatred. Calpurnia lived through an unspeakable tragedy, a media shitstorm, and her own personal demons, and still emerged strong, honest, and giving. A true role model.

--Heather Ward

First Rehearsal Musings

Our first rehearsal was Monday night. We had a long discussion about attitudes regarding vaginas, gender, the differences between male and female sexuality, etc. There are things I've been musing on since, such as how language contributes to behavior, and the fluidity of gender identity. (And yes, most of us do understand that the semantics of the term "Vagina Monologues" irritates many people, when many of the monologues are not, in fact, talking about the birth canal proper at all, but about the vulva, or the labia, or the clitoris. Still, "vagina" is a more universally understood term, even if it's playing fast and loose with anatomy.) (I have friends who refuse to see the show just because of that bit of semantics.)

We talked about using the word "vagina" and people's reactions to it, and that made me wonder - why does the word still carry such negative connotations for so many people? It's just a part of the body. Now, there are those who would point out, well, it's a "private" part of the body, one not discussed in polite company, but bear in mind that the interpretation of what body parts are or are not "private" varies with culture, with era, with current fashion and mores. These things are not fixed and immutable. Our great-grandparents did not mention the word "leg." Other cultures may regard other body parts as too private to show or to mention in public - maybe the navel, maybe the back of the neck, or the face. Ankles. Elbows.

There is not a single standard for which body parts are "unmentionable." Most cultures have covered the genitalia (obviously all bets are off in cold climates, which have to cover everything), but why the prohibition in our society against showing only the female breast? Its function is not, contrary to pop culture, primarily sexual - but the function of the male breast IS, yet that can be publicly displayed. There are even those who object to seeing the breast used to feed an infant.

The reason this matters is that language is powerful. It not only reflects thought, it can even direct it; how one speaks can determine how one will behave. This came up in our discussions tangentially, but the inference was clear; if the word VAGINA is unmentionable, then you are more likely to be someone who is not entirely comfortable with your own vagina, or the vaginas of others. Some women do anything to avoid touching, or seeing, or showing their vaginas, even to doctors or to lovers. But why? Why does this part of the body carry so much more psychic weight than, say, the mouth?

The other item I've been musing on is gender identity. It's always interested me, because I wasn't necessarily all that comfortable being a girl when I was younger. I have numerous older brothers (I have older sisters, too, but they're further separated in age, so I had less interaction with them.) When I was very young, I thought that I would become a boy when I grew up. I remember crying at an older sister's wedding because they put me in a flower girl dress, and I was humiliated to be wearing something that felt so wrong to me. I was frequently mistaken for a boy right up until my teens, and was always more comfortable doing "boy" things. As an adult, I've become comfortable with the gender I was born to, but still fight gender roles tooth and nail. I resent being perceived as "girly" or having stereotypical "female" traits.

Gender is not as fixed as many people assume. I have friends who define themselves as "intersex" - they may choose to identify as either gender (or neither) at different times of their lives. This baffles many people, who see gender as a strict duality - you are either entirely male, or entirely female. In fact, almost no one is entirely one or the other; we all have traits more commonly regarded as belonging to the "other." I personally believe there are an infinitude of possible genders; everyone is their own personal mixture of male and female. The only problem that creates is personal pronouns - the non-gender-specific pronouns are painfully awkward when you aren't accustomed to them.

Society wants to pigeonhole individuals into gender roles. It's easier to know how to relate to someone if you know where they "fit" instead of having to adapt to each person's uniqueness. But not all women are natural nurturers, and not all men are born to strive and compete. Forcing individuals into roles that do not fit causes much unnecessary stress and unhappiness.

And the final item in this much-too-long musing of mine is regarding the differences between male and female sexuality (this is an obvious broad generalization, especially considering the previous few paragraphs!). I heard a comedian put it this way some years ago, and it's stuck with me - and yes, it's humor, but there's some inherent truth to it, too. A man's sexuality can be compared to a windup toy. Start it up, and it just goes, simple and predictable. A woman's, on the other hand, is best compared to the cockpit of a 747, one in which all the controls have to be used in the proper sequence in order to achieve the desired result - oh, and the switches all move around every time you get in the cockpit. Another comparison I once heard that I liked was that men are like lightbulbs, and women are more like an iron. A man's sexual response just turns on, and then off, whereas a woman's may take longer to get going, but once it does, it stays hot for a long, long time.

If our rehearsals are any predictor, the play is going to be quite the conversation-starter. People will leave us thinking and talking about their attitudes toward bodies, toward sexuality, and toward gender.

--Geni Hawkins

Audition and Pre-rehearsal Musings from the Cast

A bit about the audition process... I've always acted on impulse when it comes to auditions. I've noticed a divide between actors who audition for anything, some just for the sake of it... they may be WAY off... but it's the experience, the flow, the networking? I'm not terribly sure, as I am far from that eager to put myself out there.

I'm selective, precise, though far from discriminatory. I pick and chose my battles, and for some odd reason, I look upon auditions as a necessary battle to plow through and succeed, even if I'm not cast, it's more a matter of feeling confident that I gave it a natural, honest 'best'.

I had it in my head going into this particular audition that I was joining late in the game, which was, indeed, the case I'd learn. Okay... maybe not late, but further into it than the rest of the cast.

To cut to it, I found myself elated, emotional, by the offer to participate in this process. The Vagina Monologues has always served as a template of wisdom, humor, beauty, and fragility in the human spirit, not just women alike, but we as human beings - there is a sense of relation in each of these monologues that make it so universal, so profound - which is why men, woman, genderqueers, 'z''s and everything far in between flock to see the latest staging.

Be it that we are actively associated with any number of the pieces, or that we are so far away from them, their impact is harrowing, there's emotion involved from every last person who allows themselves in. I may be jumbling my words up here... and going on a bit too much... but, this is how passionate I am about this piece of art, and have been since I first came upon it some eight years ago.

For me, the honor to perform it... it goes beyond being a transgender woman, a sense of acceptance, or as an actor.. a performer who reads well, delivers monologues with proper, or witty, or smartly placed inflection... it resonates in my soul, my daily emotions. And I am so thankful, grateful, in love with that honor.

--Aiden Karamanyan, Cast Member

The Audition:
Looks like I was lucky to get a spot - several friends said they'd wanted to audition for Stone Soup this season, but all the audition slots had filled up. There are several shows in the season that I'd love to have a chance to do, especially Durang7 (Christopher Durang is always trenchant and funny). I decided to do the monologue from the new show I did in May, Christopher Bailey's Man Defeats Nature - at least no one will have heard it 10 times already today! To my surprise, after my monologue (which is very heavy dramatic stuff), Maureen Hawkins (no relation, but there's certainly a resemblance) asked me if I had anything short and comedic, a joke or a funny story.

I did the "Mamet play" bit from Neil Simon's London Suite, which I was in last year, and the auditors were very receptive, laughing at all the right places. Feeling pretty good about how I did, although it seems like a pretty long shot (the stage manager told me there were over 250 people scheduled to audition).

The Callback:
Callback for Vagina Monologues turned out to be the hottest day on record EVER for Seattle. Inside the theatre, it had to be 120 degrees.

Thankfully, it was maybe 5 or 10 degrees cooler downstairs where we were waiting for our chances to read. A dozen or more women, all drinking water by the gallon. The callback itself was unusual - the director, Tyrone Brown, asked us to pick a piece we'd like to try reading, and he just went around and listened to each of us read, then asked questions about why we'd picked that particular piece, how it resonated, etc. I opted for My Angry Vagina - I love that piece. As I told Tyrone, I picked it because the way it's written is the way I talk myself.

Upstairs into the oven of the theatre to dance as a group and simulate orgasm. Yup, simulate orgasm. Tyrone broke the ice by demonstrating that himself first. Yowza, and I thought it was hot in there before!

And a roomful of sweaty women, dancing and moaning and sighing...eat your heart out, Meg Ryan, you've got competition. Then a brief one-on-one interview with him, asking why we were interested in this show. I explained that I'd only seen it on HBO, never a live performance. I had a chance to do it a couple years back, but was unable to, and was very disappointed to miss that opportunity. Then back out into the still-hot night, and a gorgeous drive home. There were an awful lot of women there, but I did my best. We'll see.

--Geni Hawkins, cast member

Rehearsal begins tonight!

As publicity for Fool for Love lessens, having opened the show this past weekend, focus shifts towards our 10th Anniversary Edition of Eve Ensler's The Vagina Monologues, including five never-before-published monologues culled from Ensler's continuing interviews with women worldwide in an effort to eradicate violence against women.

In 2004-05, Stone Soup Theatre first produced the monologues in the intimate UpStage space - originally slotted for the month of October, the production ended up being held over through March of 2005, playing to soldout houses for nearly the entire duration of its run. With this success as a precursor, as well as Ensler's new material, it seemed like a good time to include Vagina Monologues in our season once again.

Rehearsal begins tonight - cast members will be blogging weekly about the initial auditions/callbacks, the rehearsal process and through performances and audience response, including thoughts, feelings, triumphs disappointments, all of it!

Please join us in Stone Soup's 2nd journey through the Vagina Monologues! Read the blog, follow us on Twitter, become our friend on Facebook, and most importantly, come see the show and be a part of the phenomenon! www.stonesoputheatre.org; 206.633.1883 for tickets.