Photo Credit: Janelle Moore
Author: Iyanna Armwood
Chatham University’s annual performance of “The Vagina Monologues,” have come and gone successfully again with the help of the its directors, Indigo Baloch, Bethany Bookout and Megan Cooper, and its cast. “The Vagina Monologues,” are a series of monologues made up of interviews with women. The aim of the play is to provide insight on issues surrounding the vagina and the female gender. These monologues were held on February 17, in Eddy Theater at 7 p.m. with a large turn out.
Anyone who has attended Chatham for more than a year generally knows the monologues being performed; however, not everyone knows what goes on the behind the scenes. Maggie McGovney, a senior Biology major, performed the monologue “I was There in the Room.” This monologue is about Eve Ensler, the playwright of “The Vagina Monologues,” describing the birth of her granddaughter. For anyone who knows McGovney, she is a comedic person, and often tells many jokes. She said the most difficult part of preparing was performing a more serious monologue compared to her previous years when she performed more light-hearted monologues, such as “Reclaiming Cunt.”
After being dragged to see it her first year, McGovney decided to audition for the Vagina Monologues because she believes it is important to talk about the issues surrounding the vagina.
“Everyone knows the difference between the penis and the scrotum, but not everyone knows the difference between the clitoris and the vagina,” she explained. For those who watch Orange is the New Black, this issue of ignorance was also brought up in that series when many female inmates did not know that they had a separate hole, the urethra, to urinate out of that is not in the vagina.
Madeleine Gierchak, Sophomore Pre-K – 4 Education major, performed “The Vagina Workshop” and “Reclaiming Cunt.” “The Vagina Workshop,” is about a woman discovering the wonders of her vagina while “Reclaiming Cunt” is about a woman explaining that the word “cunt” itself is a lovely word, despite its disconcerting connotations. Gierchak found inspiration in performing the latter monologue because she never enjoyed the word “cunt,” but the piece made her want to reclaim the work and not think of it in a negative way.
Ms. Gierchak explained the importance of the Vagina Monologues, for her, stream from her own experiences. “Too many times during sex was I uncomfortable or uninterested in my own body,” she said. Similar to McGovney, Gierchak finds talking about the women’s bodies, especially the vagina an important topic that must be discussed. After asked how she felt about the end result, Gierchak exclaimed, “You will be seeing me doing them next year!” Those who enjoyed her performance can look forward to seeing it again a year from now.