The Vagina Monologues by Eve Ensler at Hull New Theatre (1/2) By Becky Martin

(1/2), (2/2)

How The Vagina Monologues reflects wider anxieties and atrocities in modern society.

Thank God for Eve Ensler! Finally a strong female figure with the tenacity to stand up for and work to protect women and young girls all over the world, initiated by her wonderfully comic and complex tales of women's experiences of their own sexuality and bodies in The Vagina Monologues.

I'm in awe of her hard work and dedication in travelling the world and gathering more than 200 tales from women concerning sex, tampons, childbirth, sex therapists, gynaecologists, old age and emotional and physical abuse at the hands of men.

Sitting in Hull New Theatre, watching Natalie Cassidy, Lesley Joseph and Rhona Cameron, on-stage faking orgasms and getting the audience to shout clit fact! and c**t, I was amazed at how the tales, instead of demeaning women in any way or portraying female bodies as being the inferior sex, instead it is a superb public celebration of women in all their glory, and the tales are about empowerment and the everlasting emotional strength of women, helping them cope through terrible atrocities all over the world, such as war, poverty, rape, genital mutilation, acid attacks, sex trafficking and prostitution.

These tales of women's first orgasms, and first sexual experiences are heart-warming and seek to connect women everywhere like a giant invisible clasping of hands and helps to emphasise women's compassion, power, love, independence and strength, in the face of overwhelming odds. Kicking off with a varied list of words and colloquial slang used to describe the vagina, including the pussycat, front bottom, down there, coochee, peach, clinch and only tuppence wasn't there.

The whole play is designed to celebrate innate femininity with vaginas at the centre, and to teach women to love their bodies and their female traits and to be proud of being a woman, and experiencing everything that a female life entails. It includes tales of sexual enlightenment, vaginal wonderment, the love between two women, and is a great example of how humour and comedy is used to break gender boundaries as a lot of men in the audience are having a great laugh. Lesley Joseph follows on enthusiastically and gives us a Clit Fact explaining that the female clitoris contains over 8000 nerves, and is twice as sensitive as any penis, hence why women are the greater sex.

Rhona Cameron energetically and hysterically runs down a list of different orgasms including the 'British' (makes no face) the OCD orgasm, (bounces around on her chair whilst cleaning the table next to her) and the surprise triple orgasm, (writhing about in her chair, back arched, hands gripped, having three orgasms one after another). And we are transported swiftly by Natalie Cassidy's tales of different countries horror stories of female victims of war, raped by rifles, sticks and broom handles. Reassuring us that at the heart of this wonderfully honest and fresh comedy, lies a dark and disturbed meaning, to raise awareness and to campaign against violence against women, regardless of nationality, colour, age and sexuality, there are thousands of women that need help and protection from male violence, disease and discrimination.

Continued...Next Page (2/2)

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