Vaginas speak out, truth discovered

Spread the word, “The Vagina Monologues” are at the Majestic Theatre, and they’ve got something very deep to say.

Vagina, vagina, vagina. How many people cringe and get tense at that very word? I know I’ve had one all of my life, just as most women have. I mean if all women have one, then why are they so afraid to talk about going “down there?”

As one of the performers Kristin Lee Kelly put it, “It’s really a question of semantics. It’s not just a word. It’s come to mean something.”

“The Vagina Monologues” are based on more than 200 interviews with women of all ages and backgrounds.

Around 1998 Eve Ensler, the program’s creator, must have woken up one morning and asked herself what’s the big deal about “down there.” She then went around the world and began asking women about their vaginas.

Questions like “If your vagina could talk, what would it say?” and, “If your vagina could wear something, what would it wear?” came up over and over again.

After collecting all this information, Ensler exploded with the idea to create the show and tell about these women’s experiences through 10 monologues.

From the “Angry Vagina” to “Hair” to the “Happy Vagina,” each monologue is given life in a way that everyone can relate to.

Each show has two traveling performers, Kelly and Starla Benford. They travel from city to city and each venue will have a new guest performer, usually someone with ties to the community.

JoBeth Williams takes center stage as the Dallas guest star. You may remember Williams from her roles in Poltergeist I and II and Wyatt Earp.

The performers have no idea what monologues they will be performing that night. It is up to the guest star to decide.

I went to the Majestic Theatre Tuesday night, completely unaware that after the performance I would forever look at myself differently.

I was a little skeptical about going to the show. Was the show going to be full of male-bashing humor? Absolutely not!

The show doesn’t bend over backwards to please the men in the crowd, but the added humor could make even the most skeptical laugh.

Women of all ages came out to the show and there was a surprisingly large amount of men present.

The show takes such a taboo subject and transforms it into and everyday topic. For once, someone has the guts to start talking about the vagina!

Each performer gives a voice for just about every topic you could think of. Covering everything from tampons to thong underwear to gynecological examinations, the “Angry Vagina” monologue goes over the top!

The “Angry Vagina” also demands that someone needs to design plain, comfortable, cotton underwear with a French tickler so women everywhere can have random orgasms throughout the day.

For Benford, the word vagina has a strong meaning:

“It’s about power and love and rediscovering women’s power. A power they didn’t know they had before.”

The last monologue completely ties it all together, discussing witnessing childbirth. You will walk away understanding that the word vagina is a metaphor for life, heart and spirit.

Having seen the show, Kelly hopes that women will see their bodies in a different light.

“I hope that women will own themselves more and be proud of what they have and who they are,” Kelly said.

After seeing “The Vagina Monologues,” no woman or man will look at the world the same way.

The show runs through this Sunday and tickets range between $15-45.

For further information, call the Majestic Theatre at (214) 880-0137 or visit www.ticketmaster.com.