March 8, 2010
 When: Thursday, March 18 and Friday, March 19, 7:30 p.m.
Where: Learning Center Auditorium, Temple University Ambler, 580 Meetinghouse Road
Listen closely to a story of empowerment. See a study in individuality. Hear a song of survival and perseverance. Join in a celebration of women.
The Vagina Monologues is all of these things and much more. An Obie Award-winning episodic play written by Eve Ensler, the performance is comprised of a varying number of monologues read by several different women. A recurring theme throughout the piece “is the vagina as a tool of female empowerment, and the ultimate embodiment of individuality.” Since its inception, The Vagina Monologues has become the centerpiece of “V-Day,” a global campaign that has raised more than $50 million for women’s anti-violence groups through benefit performances.
On Thursday, March 18, and Friday, March 19, the women of Temple University Ambler will present a rallying cry to stop the violence against women as they present their own benefit performance of The Vagina Monologues, at 7:30 p.m., in the Learning Center Auditorium.
While the performance is free and open to the public, donations will be graciously accepted for the following organizations: the Temple University Health Education and Awareness Resource Team (HEART), which includes SACE (Sexual Assault Counseling Education); the Women’s Center of Montgomery County, and Laurel House.
Volunteers — both women and men — are also needed on March 18 and 19 to help staff the performances. Volunteers are needed from 7 to 9 p.m. each night. To volunteer, please contact the Office of Student Life at 267-468-8425.
“Every year, a performance of The Vagina Monologues has been held at Main Campus;  we worked hard with HEART to also bring it to Ambler in 2009 and it was a huge success. The goal is basically to tell the stories of women — a discussion and celebration of situations and experiences related to their vaginas, which, in turn is meant to open everyone’s eyes to the damage that is being perpetrated against women,” said Dr. Wanda Lewis-Campbell, Assistant Dean for Student Life. “It’s not male bashing by any means; it’s all about understanding. Ultimately, we want our audience to understand the need to get involved to stop the violence against women. People say they want to make a difference, but in order to affect change, they have to do more than just say it.”
Under the direction of Dr. Lewis-Campbell, 12 performers — a mix of students and staff at Ambler — will take on a variety of the personas created by Ensler and based on true stories. Ensler added one new monologue this year that will be performed.
“Every person that auditioned is part of the performance and I’ve been truly impressed with the level of talent on display. I’m very pleased with the fact that these are not trained actresses — they are stretching themselves and, in many cases, going well beyond their comfort zones to bring their characters to life and have a true impact on the audience,” she said. “Our actresses have really embraced what they are doing and I think it will be a wonderful performance.”
Alexandra Bishop, Student Government Association Secretary, said her first experience with V-Day was while she was in middle school.
 “Every eighth grade girl took a vow of silence on Valentine’s Day that year to recognize women who were victims of violence throughout the world — it made a very strong statement and I was amazed that every girl participated,” she said. “When I saw the Vagina Monologues performance at Ambler last year, I knew I needed to be a part of it. I think this production is an important reminder to women of how amazing and beautiful they are. Embrace your anatomy — don’t act like it’s something that shouldn’t be discussed.”
Bishop will be performing a piece entitled “My Vagina Was My Village,” about a woman who is sexually assaulted by soldiers in Kosovo.
“These horrible experiences are not something people typically talk about, but when something like this happens, you need to talk about it, you need to deal with it,” she said. “I want the audience to feel deeply, emotionally about what they are seeing on the stage. These are not small problems; they are global issues. We can’t act like they don’t exist — we need to discuss them, deal with them, and prevent this type of violence from happening.
Claudia Bereshnyi of the Ambler Campus Admissions Office, is making a return appearance as a “proper” British woman who is “coming into” her age.
“The experience was so positive last year and I felt such camaraderie with the other cast members that I knew I wanted to do it again,” she said. “Everyone has a story and a deep capacity for understanding. Some stories are sad, some are hilarious, but we all have a very specific point of view — that is so important. While these words are Eve Ensler's, the sentiment and life that lie within the words are held in each of the participants.”
The cast, Bereshnyi said, wants to “raise awareness about the multitude of challenges that women encounter every day.”
“The message is quite simply that ‘women are awesome!’ in every respect,” she said. “It’s a very, very inclusive performance because all of the actors are, essentially, there for a very specific purpose — to honor women!”
For more information on The Vagina Monologues at Temple University Ambler, contact the Office of Student Life at 267-468-8425. For more information on the history of The Vagina Monologues and the V-Day campaign, visit www.vday.org. CONTACT: James Duffy, 267-468-8108, duffyj@temple.edu, release available by e-mail
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