The Vagina Monologues is a collection of monologues concerning women’s relationship to their own vagina — how they engage with, understand, and learn to love their vagina. The play aims to explore the shame women feel around their own bodies. By putting these experiences onstage and broadcasting them, The Vagina Monologues allows female audiences to find normalcy in their anatomy.
At the Edinburgh Fringe this year, Drama Works with Parker & Snell Company and director Carl Parker have created an opportunity for more generations to discover this poignant piece. Linda Murphy, Louisa Bawden, and Mairé Stephens performed the monologues successfully, balancing comedic and serious moments well.
The minimalistic performance consisted of all three women sitting in chairs wearing feather boas. Additionally, the lighting that highlights the speaker of each monologue made the stories alone the focus of the show. I found it easy to immerse myself in the monologues with this reserved rendition.
I attended the show’s opening performance, and the actresses were clearly nervous. At times they stumbled over words or got lost where they were; still, they managed to convey the powerful message of each monologue. While I’m sure they will become more comfortable as the run progresses, I found the nerves to be somewhat grounding. Their anxiety reminded me of women that I often interact with — it made clear that women would benefit from these stories. r the shame that some women in my own life experience.
If you’re looking for some female empowerment this Fringe, then I recommend The Vagina Monologues. It’s a show that all women can learn something from.
The Vagina Monologues is running until 22 August at Studio at theSpace at Niddry St. Buy tickets here.
Image Credits: Carl Parker
