“One voice.” That is how senior and performer Amanda Hollifield described this year’s performance of The Vagina Monologues. The motif for the show is “Preventing Sexual Violence Towards Women”. Both the actors and directors, Cat Jacques and Julia Teitel, sought out to emphasize the theme as well as celebrate the nature of women, their bodies and sexuality.

“We wanted to portray the show as a big conversation. Not as ‘in your face’, but doing best not to alienate the audience” Teitel said.

Everyone made a great effort to change the atmosphere and presentation of the show.

“It’s a different kind of feeling this year – more inviting – more interactive” Hollifield said.

“The actors are really talking to the audience, rather than at them” said Teitel.

This year, the Monologues included more faculty members, such as Choir Director and Lecturer in Music Wendy Looker, Visiting Lecturer in Psychology Paige Averett, Assistant Director of Friends Center Deborah Shaw and Lecturer and Professional Tutor Becky Gibson.

It was wonderful to watch faculty members participate and represent a part of themselves students don’t normally see.

“We have forgotten the vagina. All of us. We need to be reminded of it,” said Gibson, stressing the importance of being involved in the show.

The Vagina Monologues is an ever-evolving show. It speaks to women of all ages at a current time. Keeping with the motif to stop violence against women, the Monologues speak out against the global and political issues beyond the United States, like the war in Iraq.

“What we do affects other countries as well” Jacques said.

The Monologues, in short, were excellent. The actors displayed more than just hard work and excellent enthusiasm. They showed a part of themselves, their femininity and sexuality.

Each monologue, although entirely different, was a parallel to not only the vagina, but the woman, from Vita Generalova’s “Angry Vagina,” to Dorsche Pinsky’s “Short Skirt,” to Julie Sloane’s “C-U-N-T” and Wendy Looker’s “Vagina Workshop.”

Mandy Noonan’s “Down There” – where you didn’t go, and Becky Gibson’s “I was There in the Room” displayed reverence for both the vagina and women’s fertility.

The performers created that sense of belonging, camaraderie and strength through the beauty of their voices, bodies and meanings of each of the monologues.

Junior cast member Fidelma Mckenna said: “I (performed) freshman year. Being with a community of women makes it OK to talk about sexuality.”

And maybe that’s why I felt so comforted, safe and inspired to see a cast of motivated, beautiful, women presenting themselves to the community. I felt proud to call myself a woman, knowing there are other women in our society living and struggling with similar issues.

“It’s about promoting understanding, while maybe pushing limits and boundaries that people aren’t used to–the taboo,” said senior cast member Rachel White.

In addition to performing in The Vagina Monologues, Women’s Studies liaison and junior Samantha Kittle reorganized the “Clothesline Project.”

Occupying Founders hall the last week of February, the project will dislay an exhibition against sexual and domestic violence. Proceeds from both the Clothesline Project and the showings of the Monologues will go to the Clara House, a battered women’s shelter in Greensboro.

“Feminism should be one of those values we own,” Jacques said.

The Clothesline Project and the outstanding performance(s) of The Vagina Monologues extends the celebratory nature of women across campus.

Jacques said that she hopes to have feminism embraced by not only women, but men as well. “I can’t imagine where there’s a women’s world and man’s world. They have to intersect.”

“There is a binding factor that makes us all female,” Teitel said.

But beyond the woman and vagina, there is even more to The Vagina Monologues than just gender and sex.

“We can’t be ourselves until we live fully in our bodies” said Gibson.