"I have a vagina... and I like to be on stage. That's what I said at auditions. Women's issues are important to me, and some of the issues in the monologues are things I can relate to in my life."
So says Jeanne Rittschof, this writer's roommate and a fellow cast member of The Vagina Monologues, playing tomorrow and Saturday night in Page Auditorium.
The Vagina Monologues, written by Eve Ensler, is an aptly named collection of monologues featuring women discussing that down-there region. For the past six years, colleges across the country have been producing the show on Valentine's Day as part of Ensler's V-Day charity's College Campaign. Proceeds benefit global organizations working to end violence against women and girls, as well as local charities--Duke's production, in its fifth year, supports Durham crisis centers with its production. Some cast members cite the nature of the show--a benefit performance--as a reason for auditioning. Colleen Denny, who performs "The Vagina Workshop," said "it seemed like a worthwhile cause" but also added that she'd always wanted to try a fake British accent.
Because the show is student directed and acted, rehearsals have an easy atmosphere, often in contrast to intense material.
"It's supportive and fun and we talk openly about our sexuality. We'll peruse the underground women's magazines in the Women's Center and hang out," said Rittschof, who performs several monologues in tandem with other cast members, as a part of the "Vulva Choir."
Although participants are made to feel at ease, there are the occasional moments of "ew" when rehearsing and what Rittschof calls "crickets" when people ask certain questions.
"You'll say, 'haven't you ever done that?' and then there's silence... you can hear crickets chirping..." The cast has achieved new comfort levels, however, with the addition of rehearsal vulva puppets.
"We use them to talk to each other during rehearsal," said Rittschof. "I showed up one day and was like, 'Oh, what's this?' and they were like, 'It's a vulva puppet!' It has decorative jewels. It's like when you go into a guy's room and see a Playboy on the table and flip through it, you feel compelled even though it's kind of dirty and you feel wrong."
While the vulva puppets are a new addition to the show, there are also new monologues, while others have been deleted. The show often comes under fire for its emphasis on victims and for portraying men as uniformly oppressive. Although the yearly revisions of the script are not meant to pander to such criticism, updates take into account audience response and new statistics, as well as new women's issues around the world.
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