Vagina Monologues gives Rice women a voice
When asked about The Vagina Monologues, playwright Eve Ensler said, "I think often women are not listened to, and the monologue forces you to listen." Although originally written in the '90s, it is clear that the issues of womanhood, identity and sexuality Ensler wanted to give voice to back then are very much present now. Director and Baker College junior Tori Laxalt and her cast of 18 women courageously continue Sid Richardson College's tradition of bringing those issues to life in this year's production of The Vagina Monologues.The production consists of a series of monologues based on the experiences of over 200 women Ensler interviewed, each introduced with a fact or statistic by narrator and Martel College freshman Carrie Li. Some monologues are compilations of the stories of several women, while others are based on a single woman's account, a fact one wants desperately to forget when listening to a few of the more harrowing monologues. The sheer amount of memorization and courage required of each cast member is remarkable. With virtually no set, lighting or dialogue to rely on, each actress is completely vulnerable onstage, asked to command the entirety of the audience's attention for minutes on end. This is clearly a difficult feat which some are able to pull off rather impressively. Although the title of the play may lead some to assume a night of no-holds-barred male bashing, the monologues are more about the experiences of navigating through a world which holds so many conflicting views towards women. The monologues range from the lighthearted ("Six-Year-Old Girl") to the heartbreaking ("My Vagina Was My Village") to the shocking ("Reclaiming Cunt"). Although the show is far from comfortable, these monologues do exactly what Ensler set out to do, which is present the true accounts and experiences of women all over the world - the beautiful and the ugly.The Vagina Monologues falls victim to a few production issues. Although the venue itself is small enough to support an intimate production, it is at times difficult to hear or understand what actors are saying due to projection or enunciation issues. This shortcoming occasionally takes away from potentially funny or moving moments.One of the biggest challenges in staging a series of monologues is maintaining the momentum of the show and avoiding stagnancy, a challenge not quite overcome by this production. This is especially evident in the transitions between monologues, when the audience has to wait for one actress to exit before the next can enter. Some monologues could use a bit more staging to support the weaker actresses, while in other monologues, the movement seems ill-planned and tends to be distracting.There are certainly moments when the show shines, mostly due to the individual actresses who bring their monologues to life in a wonderfully engaging way. In "The Flood," Duncan College sophomore Clara Roberts is masterful as an elderly woman haunted by an embarrassing incident during her teenage years. The matter-of-fact way in which she recounts the story hits all the humorous moments while still effectively conveying the deep humiliation and fear which resulted.McMurtry College sophomore Shane Alpert throws inhibition to the wind in her fast-paced and highly amusing presentation of "The Woman Who Loved to Make Vaginas Happy," which culminates in a masterful display of vocal Olympics. Other standouts include Lovett College freshman Amber Wang in "Because He Liked to Look at It" as a woman who learns to love herself through the love of another and Sid Richardson College sophomore Maddie Camp, who performs a hilarious diatribe against the restrictions society places on women and their vaginas in "My Angry Vagina."Despite its flaws, The Vagina Monologues brings up many topics that tend to be shied away from, and this production is sure to bring up important questions and beliefs that deserve to be examined, both here at Rice and in communities around the world. Proceeds from the performances will go to the Houston Area Women's Center.