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-   -   Vagina Monologues (https://www.fodors.com/community/united-states/vagina-monologues-154425/)

Louise Jan 9th, 2003 12:09 PM

Vagina Monologues
 
I've heard that the show will be closing soon. A friend has told me that I've got to see it before it closes. Was wondering if anyone out there has seen the show.

Flynn Jan 9th, 2003 12:10 PM

I saw the show with three different actresses playing various roles/monologues. The original was written and played by Eve Ensler and she's in it now. Go see it - very wise and funny.

Nadine Jan 9th, 2003 12:15 PM

Louise, it's a great, though somewhat controversial show. I believe that the show is being performed by the author Eve Ensler now, which is the way it was originally produced. I think it would be a must see, if Eve Ensler is in it.

martha Jan 9th, 2003 12:56 PM

Louise if you read the archives here you'll read quite a few positive comments, but a large number of negative ones. <BR>I sense it's one of those 'love it or hate it' shows, not much in between. Depends on your personality.

Elizabeth Jan 9th, 2003 03:30 PM

I liked it when I read it, and heard it read aloud by a teacher.<BR><BR> I hated it, and the audience as well,<BR>when I saw it. Eve Ensler was performing it. The audience was ready to spend an evening in cheap nervous laughter, and she was ready to play to them. In fact the material does not &quot;require&quot; cheap nervous laughter.<BR><BR>

Linda Jan 10th, 2003 05:08 AM

Louise, it depends what interests you. If you prefer the revival type of Broadway show or the simple, lowest common denominator type of show, you probably should pass on Vagina Monologues. If you like to push the boundaries and enjoy original thought then you should check it out.

Theatergoer Jan 10th, 2003 05:37 AM

Sorry, Linda, I don't agree with your pompous/snobbish comments. Beauty is indeed in the eyes of the beholder!

sawit Jan 10th, 2003 06:24 AM

I saw it with a group of friends. Two guys and four women. Out of the entire group--only one person liked it. Two people left after an hour and went to the lobby for drinks. It was boring. If you have HBO, they've shown the show. I didn't find it to be wise or funny--it was just BORING!

Ann Jan 10th, 2003 06:39 AM

I am in the THUMBS DOWN camp.<BR>I thought they were just trying to get a shock reaction.<BR>It didn't work for me.

MCP Jan 10th, 2003 06:44 AM

I'm an unapologetic feminist, but the thing annoys me considerably. The only reason it has any impact at all is that we are still obsessed with and, at the same time, all giggly about certain aspects of sex. As for a celebration of womanhood? It's a rather juvenile idea of what that might be. <BR><BR>Can anyone tell me how old Eve Ensler is? My hypothesis is that she's not much older than 35 and still thinks womanhood is defined by anatomy and hormones. In that she is no feminist.

Tracy Jan 10th, 2003 11:12 AM

It's a great cutting edge show. My sister and I saw it last year and thought it was one of the best shows we've ever seen.

Tom Jan 10th, 2003 11:20 AM

Louise<BR><BR>The show was originally supposed to run for three months. Three years later it's still running and there have been dozens of tours around the country. It's definetly worth seeing.

Connie Jan 10th, 2003 11:49 AM

My daughter saw it twice while in London for a month. Obviously, she liked it because she was on a limited budget.

HBO fan Jan 10th, 2003 12:05 PM

Have only seen it on HBO, so take my opinion with a grain of salt. I thought it was really funny at the beginning. When they started shouting the c-word, I lost interest. (For me, it went from clever to self-degrading.)<BR>

eleanor jameson Jan 10th, 2003 02:07 PM

I saw it in NYC and found the whole thing degrading. The whole idea seemed in the end to suggest that women are literally talking vaginas. That's pretty depressing.

Susie Jan 10th, 2003 02:11 PM

I liked it, didn't love it, found it a bit over the top at times, sad and funny at other times. I can imagine how some would be incredibly uncomfortable, and I cannot imagine how a man would either enjoy it or not feel uncomfortable.

Angie Jan 10th, 2003 03:23 PM

All men have a feminine side, Susie!<BR>Didn't you know that?<BR>Just that for most it's buried so far below their ballistic-quality testosterone crust that they can't connect with it.

Elizabeth Jan 10th, 2003 05:53 PM

Oh -- all right -- here: the concept behind the show is a feminist one that I regard as valuable, which is that the sexual parts of the body of a woman are seldom mentioned, let alone elaborated culturally as is the penis/phallus. That there is alomost total silence about this part of a woman, which is of course profoundly central in many ways.<BR><BR> That is the idea. Eve Ensler elaborated it through gathering interviews with all kinds of women, women who were embarrassed about this subject, women who were thoughtful, women who were amusing, women who had been abused.<BR><BR> But : then: in my opinion (only), she trashed what she had created, by dropping it down onto a coarse wavelength where, as I said, cheap nervous laughter was encouraged. <BR><BR> I would guess that the people who liked it were at performances that were more tru to the spirit of the project.

Geoff Jan 11th, 2003 08:03 PM

I saw it in NY with Diane Carroll, Judith Ivey, and Melissa Tomei - an excellent cast.<BR><BR>Someone stated that every time the <BR>&quot;c _ _ _&quot; or other words were mentioned everyone was expected to roar with laughter - Huh???<BR><BR>True, because the language used caused a little nervous laughter at the beginning - maybe just because of the surprise of hearing the above mentioned actresses saying the words - but 10 minutes into the production everyone was paying attention to what was being said.<BR><BR>They've had numerous actresses play (actually read) the parts. I don't know if it's different with other casts as I have seen it only once. I enjoyed it very much.


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