FAN flies feminist flag By Eric Shapiro - Skidmore News 2-12-10
Vaginas. They're all over the place (certainly a majority at Skidmore), but it's probably safe to say that they're underrepresented in conversation. For years, the college's branch of the Feminist Action Network, an organization devoted to feminist and gender issues, particularly sexual violence, has made its mission to play a part in ending this genital injustice by staging annual productions of the "Vagina Monologues".
"The Vagina Monologues" consists of a series of anecdotes told by women from various cultures and ethnic backgrounds. The one thing all of their speeches have in common is that they use the vagina as a launching point to discuss issues relating to female sexuality, from pleasure to violence.
"The message of the play is that violence against women needs to stop and there needs to be less stigma associated with women's bodies. There needs to be an increase in respect among men and women," said Carly Goldstein '11, one of the play's producers.
The controversial overtones of such an in-your-face exploration of a taboo subject are not lost on FAN. "I definitely do think that this show will offend some people… just that sheer fact is enough to tell us that we need to be doing this show," Goldstein said. FAN's goal in staging the production is to foster an environment where "these topics are able to be discussed much more readily," Goldstein said.
Indeed, FAN's experience of working with the cast, which consists of 14 students with varied backgrounds, interests and personal beliefs, has perhaps provided an indication of how audience members will react to the show. Goldstein acknowledged that a major aspect of the production process was challenging the cast members to get over their embarrassment in confronting the subject matter.
However, they were soon having heated debates over who would get to perform specific orgasms. An oft-discussed part of the show features one of the characters, a dominatrix who revels getting other women off, delivering a diverse array of impressions. In FAN's rendition, orgasm duties are shared among the cast; it would not, after all, be fair for one actress to have all the fun.
In a departure from previous years, the play will be performed in Falstaff's instead of the dance studio. "In the dance theatre, you have a typical stage and then audience members. In Falstaff's, our plan is to hopefully integrate the audience a little more physically into the show," Goldstein said. She declined to specify, as she was reluctant to give away any surprises.
FAN's rendition of "The Vagina Monologues" is set to run at 8 p.m. on Feb. 19 and Feb. 20, and 2 p.m. Feb. 21 in Falstaff's. Tickets will be on sale in Case Center starting this weekend.
"The Vagina Monologues" consists of a series of anecdotes told by women from various cultures and ethnic backgrounds. The one thing all of their speeches have in common is that they use the vagina as a launching point to discuss issues relating to female sexuality, from pleasure to violence.
"The message of the play is that violence against women needs to stop and there needs to be less stigma associated with women's bodies. There needs to be an increase in respect among men and women," said Carly Goldstein '11, one of the play's producers.
The controversial overtones of such an in-your-face exploration of a taboo subject are not lost on FAN. "I definitely do think that this show will offend some people… just that sheer fact is enough to tell us that we need to be doing this show," Goldstein said. FAN's goal in staging the production is to foster an environment where "these topics are able to be discussed much more readily," Goldstein said.
Indeed, FAN's experience of working with the cast, which consists of 14 students with varied backgrounds, interests and personal beliefs, has perhaps provided an indication of how audience members will react to the show. Goldstein acknowledged that a major aspect of the production process was challenging the cast members to get over their embarrassment in confronting the subject matter.
However, they were soon having heated debates over who would get to perform specific orgasms. An oft-discussed part of the show features one of the characters, a dominatrix who revels getting other women off, delivering a diverse array of impressions. In FAN's rendition, orgasm duties are shared among the cast; it would not, after all, be fair for one actress to have all the fun.
In a departure from previous years, the play will be performed in Falstaff's instead of the dance studio. "In the dance theatre, you have a typical stage and then audience members. In Falstaff's, our plan is to hopefully integrate the audience a little more physically into the show," Goldstein said. She declined to specify, as she was reluctant to give away any surprises.
FAN's rendition of "The Vagina Monologues" is set to run at 8 p.m. on Feb. 19 and Feb. 20, and 2 p.m. Feb. 21 in Falstaff's. Tickets will be on sale in Case Center starting this weekend.