APSU celebrates V-Day with “The Vagina Monologues”
Forget conversation hearts and love letters. Some Austin Peay students are taking the stage to share their V-Day message.For the third consecutive year, APSU will present The Vagina Monologues, as part of worldwide V-Day events. Performances will begin at noon, Friday, Feb. 13 and at 7 p.m., Monday, Feb. 16 in APSUs Clement Auditorium.
Forget conversation hearts and love letters. Some Austin Peay students are taking the stage to share their V-Day message.
For the third consecutive year, APSU will present “The Vagina Monologues,” as part of worldwide V-Day events. Performances will begin at noon, Friday, Feb. 13 and at 7 p.m., Monday, Feb. 16 in APSU's Clement Auditorium.
Founded in 1998, V-Day allows opponents of violence against women and girls to organize annual benefits, including performances of Eve Ensler's Obie Award-winning play, “The Vagina Monologues.” To date, more than $14 million dollars in proceeds have been donated to anti-violence organizations.
APSU's upper-division theatre, social work and women's studies students present “The Vagina Monologues” each year as part of an interdisciplinary course named for the play. Though past performances have grossed a total of $2,900, there is concern outside competition will decrease this year's donations.
“People don't realize [V-Day performances] of “The Vagina Monologues” are a different product than other performances of the play,” says Lindsey Reeves, one of three student coordinators. “Every year, Eve sends an updated script. Our performance is new every year.”
Estelle Hatcher, student co-director, says the passion of those participating in the APSU production provides audience members with a more intense experience.
“With a cast of 20 women, it's going to be amazing. The women in this class and the community feel so strongly about the issues. It creates a completely different energy and feel.”
Student contributions to this year's performance include a poem written and recited by John Thomas Cecil and belly dancing by Erin Gibney.
“Belly dancing is a form of celebrating the power and beauty of women's bodies,” says Dr. Jill Eichhorn, director of Women's Studies. “It was originally an art form and
means of empowerment, meant to strengthen the body for childbirth.”
Though V-Day's mission is to stop violence against women and girls, Reeves says both genders will benefit from attending the production.
“People think ‘The Vagina Monologues' focuses on women, but it focuses on all genders. When a woman is affected by violence, the men in her life are affected, as well. This play can help men and women cope with their experiences and maybe discover something new in themselves.”
Admission is $3 per person. T-shirts and baked goods will be sold from 10 a.m.-2 p.m., Friday, Feb. 6, in the Morgan University Center lobby. All proceeds will be donated to The Rape and Sexual Assault Center, Centerstone Survivors Group, Safe House and Sanctuary House.
For further information, telephone 6314.
¬—Terry Stringer