Eve Ensler first performed "The Vagina Monologues" in 1966, and since then it has been performed all over the world. Professional and college theaters alike perform the production. Although Hope College’s theater department has never performed "The Vagina Monologues," casts of dedicated female students, for the past 10 plus years has produced the episodic production off campus. However, they have always had the intention to bring it to Hope’s campus.
On January 22nd, director of the 2016 production of "The Vagina Monologues," Alissa Heynen, met with two faculty members, the dean of the Arts and Humanities, Dr. Patrice Rankin, and President John C. Knapp. Heynen left the meeting excited to tell the cast that they were finally going to perform on campus.
Two days later, Heynen, received an email from President Knapp, expressing his concern that the production did not have the “necessary trust and support” needed, and that the campus community was simply not ready for the provocative play.
This was a huge blow to the cast, especially with only two weeks before the opening night.
In response to the revoked privilege, members of the cast sat through Chapel, where President Knapp was speaking, with duct tape over their mouths to silently protest their displeasure, and to symbolically represent how they felt they were being silenced.
Soon after the protest, a survey and petition were drafted and passed out amongst the student body and faculty. The survey was to see whether the student body was comfortable with "The Vagina Monologues" being performed on campus, while the petition was to garner support for future performances for years to come.
Some of you may go to the performance out of curiosity, some of you may be fans, and some of you may just be wondering what’s the big deal? Why should you care about "The Vagina Monologues"? "The Vagina Monologues" covers many aspects of the feminine experience in the form of stories. Topics such as sexual assault, body positivity, genital mutilation, menstruation, masturbation, birth and love are covered. These stories, real-life accounts, have opened up dialogue about sexual assault prevention, how to combat insecurities and embrace your sexuality.Some of the material is graphic and vulgar to some. For example, one of the monologues, “I Was There in the Room,” is based off of Eve Ensler’s experience when she witnessed her granddaughter’s birth. This particular piece made me a bit uncomfortable because of how well it painted a picture of childbirth. But even though it made me uncomfortable it didn’t matter and the feeling didn’t last, and I don’t think life should be comfortable.
If you go to "The Vagina Monologues" you’ll hear the testimonies of a sex worker, a 72-year-old woman who has been ashamed of her body for the majority of her life, a Bosnian rape camp victim and many other characters. These women despite their different experiences can teach us, men and women, a thing or two about embracing our sexuality and not being ashamed of our bodies. This is why the cast is so persistent. They believe so strongly in "The Vagina Monologues" numerous messages that they have fought hard to get back on campus and perform February 4, 5, and 6. And it is this weekend that all their hard work will pay off and they will finally perform for the Hope community.
The cast of "The Vagina Monologues" does not do this so they can say “vagina” more times in one night than some have heard in a lifetime, but to encourage conversations about safety, empowerment and physical and mental health.
