The Vagina Monologues at first glance appears to be a
racy subject, but in reality it is not.
The Vagina Monologues is an Obie-award-winning play by Eve Ensler. It is part of a national campaign to eradicate sexual violence against women, and it uses Valentine's Day as a day to celebrate women.
The Vagina Monologues was first performed by the writer as an off-Broadway play. The play is broken into differing monologues with unusual titles, such as "I was 12. My Mother Slapped Me.", "My Angry Vagina", and "Because He Liked To Look At It". Each monologue draws on interviews with women, and range from funny to painful to newfound wisdom. Each tells a story of compassion, humor, integrity and the strength of women. The stories include growing up, life during wartime, different ethnicities, different ages and different sexual orientations.
There is no background stage, only the performer giving the monologue. There is nothing to distract from the message from each tale. When the New York Times reviewed the play, they deemed it "funny and poignant". The play is currenty touring the United States in small theatres and colleges.