Eve Ensler on ‘The Vagina Monologues’ and V-Day

Even Eve Ensler, The Vagina Monologues playwright, will agree with me when I say that the most significant thing about the play, aside from it’s empowering message, is the fact that it has become an important social movement for women. When you speak to Eve, as I did at her flat in London where she was doing a special engagement run of the play, she excitedly claims "The greatest miracle of The Vagina Monologues is V-Day: a day to end violence towards women, which was born out of the monologues."

Most people know that The Vagina Monologues is undoubtedly the most exciting and socially provocative play the world has seen in years. It has played in over 35 countries, and been translated into 20 languages. It has won numerous awards and been acclaimed everywhere it has played. It has changed lives and propelled people into action.

For the New Voice Company alone, it has brought us to Manila and all over the Philippines, Hong Kong (twice) and Singapore – playing to packed houses and enthusiastic audiences. As for myself, it has brought me as far as Tokyo, where I performed the Bosnia piece on rape, as a special guest of V-Day for the Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal for Women. It has also brought me to Zutphen, The Netherlands, where I once again performed the piece in an international conference for people’s rights. In between was being a special guest at the V-Day concert in New York last February, being the spokesperson for the Purple Rose Campaign, an international campaign to end sex trafficking of Filipino women and children, as well as launching and spearheading the campaign in London, where I am currently completing my masters in drama and education and directing. Soon the show will be taking us across the globe when the New Voice Company performs the Filipino version for Filipino groups all over the US, Europe, Asia and Canada. Pre-production is now going on for over 12 countries and 17 cities worldwide. Like our Asia runs, all NVC-TVM performances abroad will raise funds for the Purple Rose Campaign and will be worldwide V-Day events.

What most people don’t know is that because of the play, V-Day was born. V-Day is an incredible movement that raises funds for organizations worldwide. I asked Eve, during a V-Day meeting in London, what is V-Day, and how did it all come about?

Eve literally turns hyperactive when answering about V-Day, such is her passion to women’s causes: "V-Day was born in 1998 as an outgrowth of The Vagina Monologues," says Eve. "When I first performed the piece in small towns and larger cities all over the world, I saw and heard first hand the terrible and massive consequences of violence towards women, as hundreds of women told me their stories, night after night after the show, of rape, incest, domestic battery, sexual slavery and genital mutilation. It was clear to me that something major and dramatic needed to be done."

This year, V-Day happened on every continent on earth, with over 270 V-Day celebrations around the world. The New York show featured 75 internationally acclaimed actresses such as Glenn Close, Oprah Winfrey, Calista Flockhart and Jane Fonda, among others. In the Philippines we celebrated with a special concert entitled Purple Rose... An evening with The Vagina Monologues, featuring over 35 artists from film, TV, recording and theater. In Hong Kong and Singapore, we did performance runs of the play. In other parts of the world, V-Day events happened in over 33 US states and over 23 countries-all doing special benefit performances of The Vagina Monologues, with songs, dances, poetry, and art exhibits.

An important aspect of V-Day is its’ involvement with the young. This year, V-Day also launched a college and youth initiative campaign, where over 450 colleges across America did V-Day events and raised funds for their local women’s organizations. For 2002, the New Voice Company is proud to announce that, aside from hosting V-Day worldwide events, we are also launching a regional and college initiative campaign, where colleges and community groups around the Philippines, Hong kong and Singapore can mount their version of the play, to raise funds for women’s beneficiaries in their communities. I was so honored when I was offered the position of assistant director-international coordinator of the regional/college campaigns for all of Southeast Asia. It means that aside from mounting V-Day events in countries where we own the copyright of the play, I will also be coordinating with hundreds of colleges and community groups all over Southeast Asia who wish to do regional/college V-Day events. All events raise funds and awareness for women’s groups. Already in London we have had meetings with groups such as Amnesty International, Refuge, Women’s Aid Federation, among others. Recently, I was in New York to meet with the other heads of V-Day to discuss strategies and ideas to help bring TVM and V-Day to more people across the world.

Speaking to Eve, she moves me when she tells me to keep on doing the work we do, no matter if people initially get sacred of the title (you’ll be surprised how many people fear the word vagina), or sponsors don’t come in because they fear repercussions. When Eve tells me "When young women are involved, the world will change," I know she is right. "They will move the movement forward," she says, and I feel a lump in my throat. Never in all my artistic life have I done a show I feel so passionately about, a show that has changed my life, a show that allows us to make such a difference to people’s lives. Doing one show has made me more active with political and social movements, with Purple Rose Campaign, with the Gabriela’s women’s group who spearhead the campaign, with various Filipino migrant organizations abroad. From last September, when we first produced the play, I have attended so many conferences on women and migrant workers, been in touch with wonderful individuals and organizations who help women who are abused and exploited, battered and raped. My life has changed so fast. Never has one play kept me inspired to do work largely outside of the theater. Yet never has a play before affirmed my belief that theater does indeed rock notions, challenges, conventions, inspires actions, provokes thought and propels change. The Vagina Monologues has shown that theater is a powerful platform to change lives.

The Vagina Monologues will rock Manila once again, but this time in a Filipino version. The translations give us the chance to localize the play and make it even more relevant to the issues of Filipina women.

The Filipino translations are done by award-winning Filipina playwrights Glecy Atienza, Joi Barrios and Luna Sicat-Cleto. The show features a brand new cast – critically acclaimed TV, film, recording and theatre actresses Arlene Borja, Pinky Marquez and Harlene Bautista-Sarmenta. The Filipino translation opens at the Music Museum on Aug. 31 and runs until Sept. 15. The English version of the show is still continuing its national tour, with repeat performances in Cebu’s Ayala Center at the end of September. Joining original TVM actress Tami Monsod for the national tour are award-winning theater, recording and film artists Lyn Sherman and Lara Fabregas. Lara already joined the touring cast early this year, taking over the parts I played in the original production. NVC associate directors Andrew Vergara and Rito Asilo direct the English and Filipino versions respectively.

Aside from organizing the regional/college youth initiative campaign for V-Day 2002, the New Voice Company is also mounting a special Philippine V-Day worldwide event with a special one night concert at Meralco Theater on Feb. 9, 2002. The theatrical concert called Kababaihan features over 80 Filipina artists from theater, film, recording and television, as well as from various arts and performance groups, and will feature The Vagina Monologues play with music, movement, personal testimonies, dance, visual interplay and video projections. In the lobby will be related V-Day events such as an art exhibit, T-shirt displays on violence against women, poetry readings, among others. The night will also declare Manila a rape free zone, and signatures will be taken from audiences demanding an end to violence against women of the Philippines and around the world.

When you ask Eve, why the vagina as a vehicle to empower women, she answers "Your vagina is the story of your life, no doubt about it. But often that story goes unspoken, partly because for a long time, vaginas have not been visible, not been part of the dialogue. Often when I was interviewing, women would tell me this was the first conversation they ever had about their genitals. Once they got going , they couldn’t stop. It was as though the mystery, the joy, the depth, the sorrow that lived inside them was finally being released and made manifest. Just by telling the story of her vagina, the woman was suddenly more vibrant, more powerful and more real."

Hearing her passionately speak about V-Day makes you understand the empowering effect it has had on the lives of women everywhere, and makes you realize the importance of taking a stand, of doing something, of being involved even in small way. "V-Day is a vision", says Eve, "where we see a civilization where women live in freedom and safety. It is a catalyst. By raising wide public awareness of the issues of violence against women, it will reinvigorate efforts already under way and commence new initiatives in publicity, education, and law."

"Finally, V-Day is a spirit", says Eve. "Women should live life creating and thriving rather than surviving or recovering from terrible atrocities."

When I think of all the Filipino women who are raped in their own homes by their fathers, uncles and brothers, of the thousands of Filipino women who are sold and trafficked as mail order brides, entertainers and sex slaves, of the Filipino women battered everyday, I realize that The Vagina Monologues and V-Day are but small aspects of being able to help create awareness about violence towards women. But as Eve says "It is a call, an unconscious mandate, perhaps. But something is unfolding. It is both physical and practical. It requires that we show up, do our exercise and get out of the way. In order for the human race to continue, women must be safe and empowered. It’s an obvious idea, but like a vagina, it needs great attention and love in order to be revealed."

The Vagina Monologues in Filipino opens at the Music Museum on Aug. 31. For tickets, show buying and sponsorships, call the NVC office at 896-54-97, 896- 66-95 and telefax 899-06-30. For those interested to join the V-Day worldwide events as well as the regional/college youth initiative campaigns, there will be a V-day meeting at the NVC Actors Studio on Saturday, Sept. 1, at 3 p.m. Those interested can phone NVC and sign up with Brando Ortega, or e-mail nvcpost@hotmail.com or newvoicecompany @aol.com. For information on TVM national tours, international productions, NVC workshop classes and season 2002 shows, call or e-mail the NVC Actors Studio. Visit the V-Day website at www.vday.org.