AsiaLIFE

V-Day stands for victory, valentine and vagina. Now in its eleventh year, the V-Day Movement arose from performances of Eve Ensler’s play The Vagina Monologues, to become a global phenomenon with a mission to end violence against women and girls. This year Phnom Penh has become part of the movement, although the play itself was first performed in the capital in 2005, to wide acclaim. The Vagina Monologues is a celebration of female sexuality, the female body and femininity. The play features a host of women’s stories about their vaginas that are riotous, sad, angry, and hilarious. The message is profound – only by speaking up about women’s experiences can we end gender-based violence and give women the respect they deserve.

Real Voices

In compiling stories for the play, Eve Ensler interviewed over 200 women from all social classes. “At first women were reluctant to talk,” the author writes in the play. “They were a little shy. But once they got going, you couldn’t stop them. Women secretly love to talk about their vaginas. They get very excited, mainly because no one’s ever asked them before.”

The most surprising element of the play is its humour. There are the moans that will have the audience shrieking with laughter. There is the woman who before meeting Bob thought of her vagina as a mink-lined muffler or a china bowl. There are all the different things women would have their vaginas wear, from a male tuxedo, through high heels, to a pinafore. Like everywhere around the world, all cast and crew in the Phnom Penh production are volunteers and the V-Day events raise money for a local charity. This year’s chosen charity is Women Peacemakers, a local organisation that works with both women and men to empower communities to end gender-based violence and protect the rights of women and children.

Local Talent

Isabelle Skaburskis is directing the Phnom Penh production, which has a cast of ten women including herself. “I have always been impressed by the concentration of intelligent and powerful women in Phnom Penh, says Isabelle. “The play is an opportunity to celebrate and nurture the strength of these women who work so hard for Cambodia.” The Canadian anticipates the play to be well-received.

“Many have seen it before,” she says. “Even those who haven't or who are challenged by the topic of vaginas, will appreciate the message and the purpose, which is to explore and accept and think a little more deeply about how we feel – and talk – about ourselves.”

In 2005, Sharon Wilkinson astounded the audience with her surprise triple orgasm moan. She is happy to be involved for a second time. “First of all it’s fun,” she says. “But it’s also a production that tells the story of so many women in so many different ways and packs it into approximately an hour and a half. We’ve heard these stories over the years, and know how women are in the world – that there is abuse, that there is rape. We know it’s there, but having it told in a way that can make the audience connect, empathise, and hear the stories – to get someone who hasn’t been there to understand what it might mean, this misogyny, this structural abuse of women across the world, that’s the strength of The Vagina Monologues.”

V-Fest, a fundraising party, will be held at Rubies Wine Bar on Friday Mar. 27. The party will feature special Clitini drinks, a raffle, as well as an interactive art exhibition.

The Vagina Monologues will be performed on Apr. & 4 at 7.30pm, and Apr. 5 at 2.30pm at Khmer Surin Restaurant. Tickets cost US$12 for foreigners and US$6 for Cambodians.