A Theatrical V-Week

A word not often seen or heard on the St. Olaf campus was everywhere the week of Feb. 23: vagina. V-week, a national movement to end violence against women, was in full swing among the Oles. Students had many opportunities to educate themselves through a variety of formats, one of which was theater. Three different shows, the Ole Monologues, Feminist Theater and Vagina Monologues, brought awareness for the many difficulties that women face across the world.

On Feb. 25, an audience of  Oles, faculty, parents and the public gathered in the small, intimate Haugen Theatre to watch Angela Gulner ’09 and Carolyn Wesley ’09 perform Feminist Theater. The one-time performance was the culmination of their Interim studies in Feminist Performance with professor Jeanne Willcoxon. During their independent study, Gulner and Wesley were given a variety of different viewpoints on feminist theater and asked to use their own creativity in interpreting these. 

The first aspect the girls were asked to explore was how historical female artists survived and thrived, even though conditions were unfavorable for them. Willcoxon challenged them to bring the voices of such artists back to life, which Wesley and Gulner used two separate pieces to illustrate.

In a monologue, Gulner primped as she explained how she had to look just perfect for her interview to become an anchorwoman. Behind her, a screen flashed pictures that contrasted the difference between the low beauty standards for male anchormen and newscasters and the model-esque standards held for female reporters. Wesley, on the other hand, decided to highlight the difference between the dull historical records of women living on the frontier and the reality of the pain and triumphs they experienced, which she expressed with song.

Next, the girls performed together in a piece that they had designed through actively intervening in text, which Willcoxon had asked them to use to “make the construction of women explicit.” Both actresses wrapped the feet of a pair of pantyhose around their wrists, while the waists were tied together to make a sort of rubber band between them. Because of the continual twisting and turning that the girls engaged in, working the entire stage, the intensity of this piece was a step up from the others. As they stretched the pantyhose in so many directions, the girls argued over the historical character of Helen of Troy. The vast amount of literature written about Helen, passing judgment on her character, was a rich well for them to draw on in their fiercely exchanged argument.

Another aspect they examined was the role that body plays in an actress’s performance. Drawing on the writings of Jill Dolan, a professor at Princeton University, they sought to challenge perceptions of the body for both male and female viewers. In a very abstract piece, Gulner wore a mask as she slowly made her way toward a mirror, utilizing motions both graceful and violent. Rather than performing, Wesley explained how she felt most alive in her body when she got ready for the day after showering, and invited the audience to participate in her routine afterwords.

The night closed with an exciting piece that Gulner, Wesley and Willcoxon all participated in. They put their own spin on a scene from “Top Girls” by Carol Churchill. With this performance, they used reiteration and mimicry to show the constructive roles women play. The whole room exploded in laughter from the exaggerated ridiculousness of the act, particularly when Willcoxon turned on her Scottish accent.

The new classic written by Eve Ensler, “The Vagina Monologues,” was performed by an outstanding cast of Oles on Feb. 27 - March 1 in the Pause. Based on vagina interviews conducted by Ensler in the early  to mid-nineties, the monologues enlighten audiences around the world by showing how little vaginas are appreciated and the violence many women endure.
Monologues that fantastically embraced vagina-related humor were, “The Flood” performed by Cat Heuter ’11, “My Angry Vagina” acted out by Rae Couch ’11, and “The Woman Who Loved to Make Vaginas Happy” moaned by Laura Haynes ’09. These were mixed with those that took a more serious look at the vagina’s place in the world, like “My Vagina Was My Village,” read by Nandini Choudhury ’12 and Amanda Moore ’11, “I Was There in the Room,” performed by Erica Perry ’09, and “Baptized,” read by Beth Linn ’09. 

At the conclusion of the show, audience members fully realized the impact of violence against women on a community as co-directors Katie Greene ’09 and Beck Kleive ’09 invited the women who had been victims of sexual violence to stand. The co-directors also asked those who had known a woman who had been affected to stand, and those who pledged to take a stand against future violence to stand up. Standing in an Ole-filled Pause, one thing became very clear:  St. Olaf respects vaginas.

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