ARTS: Vagina's New Look

A male vagina monologue? Is it possible?

You better believe it. Tonight, 32 women and 5 men will take the stage for Duke's fourth annual production of The Vagina Monologues, a play that had once only given voice to the experiences of women and their bodies.

Eve Ensler's script will remain intact, but original monologues by Duke students - male and female - will provide a new kind of ending. The addition is part of the national campaign to introduce new pieces written by their performers.

"It's so nice to hear men speak up about [these issues]," said sophomore Alexa Russell, the show's co-director. "It shows that men are comfortable saying 'vagina' and hearing these monologues."

Four of the cast's five men met early in the semester for a writing workshop at the Women's Center. Prompted by the question, "What is your vision of a world without violence against women?" they composed a five-minute collaborative piece that draws on their personal experiences. Norman Wallace, a resident coordinator, will join them.

Russell said she has received only positive feedback about the addition of male pieces to The Vagina Monologues. "The play is told by women about women, but it totally ignores a whole gender," she said. "Men are totally a part of it. Their monologue adds something that was missing before."

In addition to the male monologue, three undergraduate women will be performing an original piece of their own.

Though The Vagina Monologues did not make its usual Valentine's Day run due to a conflicting local professional performance, the timing of this year's production is strategic. The Vagina Monologues is a fitting finish to last week's Sexual Assault Prevention Week.