V-Monolgues

Tonight I will be performing in the Albany Law school's 2010 Production of Eve Ensler's "Vagina Monologues" in a piece entitled My Vagina Was My Village.

This was a movement that started back in 1997 to raise money and awareness in hopes of stopping violence towards women. The play is highly controversial; where my parents live in Bluffton, SC members of the community try to ban the performance each year. (Thankfully my parents are not part of that anti-movement) The skits range from funny The Woman Who Loved to Make Vaginas Happy to moving I was There In The Room to heartbreaking My Vagina Was My Village. It's based on interviews of real women who had real experiences both good and bad with their vaginas. Although I am acting, the story I am telling is very real and I am honored to be a part of it again. My first time was undergrad at SUNY Albany in the skit When I was 12 My Mother Slapped Me

I would like to share a quote just to demonstrate exactly why these performances are so important:

"But if you can't rape your wife, who can you rape?" ~ Senator Bob Wilson, Democrat, California, 1979

last I checked marital rape is still legal in 11 states. That's more than 1/5 or 20% of this country. With that being said, support the movement for yourself; a sister; a friend; a wife; a mother; a daughter. Whether you know it or not you are probably connected to a woman who has survived violence against her. If you don't make it to the performance I'm involved in this weekend, google and find one near you or pick up the book. If you think "I am only one person, what can I do?" Eve Ensler was only one person too...