The Vagina Monologues, a review. . .

By Jennifer Heim

Eve Ensler’s striking stage piece opened on Friday, to a mostly female audience, at Kenosha’s Rhode Theatre. I believe I saw four men, one of whom was the husband of a cast member. Besides this peppering of any-generation testosterone, the age of the audience was all-together diverse; from a bright young college student celebrating her 19th birthday to fabulous, beautiful women in their 60’s and 70’s. There were single women, married women, mothers, grandmothers and great grandmothers.

The show stars, Melissa Kelly Cardamone, Laura Larson, and Brandi Schuld, all from Kenosha. The three women brilliantly bring a series of real interviews to life on a simple black stage without the distraction of any fancy set or props. They portray a wide range of women from elderly spinsters to “sex workers”, and from rightwing American Christians to lesbians. As the title frankly states, they focus on matters not usually mentioned in polite society, covering (or shall we say uncovering) every aspect of the vagina and all that pertains to it.

Having never seen the monologues before, I did not know what to expect. I was prepared to be unprepared. As it turns out, being a woman was all the preparation I needed! The show was chock-full of anything and everything; I was impressed with the sheer range of content. Most importantly, I thought, was that Ensler addressed important issues including the genital mutilation of young girls in some societies, a rape victims’ account of her traumatic ordeal in Bosnia and the personal memory timeline of a girl from Anytown, USA. The show ended, poignantly, with an interview about all things having to do with childbirth, which, I thought, brought the show full circle.

I did not find anything about the production trashy, nor any portrayal made purely for shock value. I thought it was raw, real and empowering! Women of Kenosha, don’t miss the opportunity to see this show locally, the experience of seeing it is well worthwhile!