>>PREVIEW
FEMME FATALE CARNIVALE
Thursday, March 16
8 p.m.
Twisted Element
>>PREVIEW
THE VAGINA MONOLOGUES
March 28 and 29
7 p.m.
University Theatre
(University of Calgary)
Over the last five years, a swelling of support for The Vagina Monologues has made the gritty examination of femininity a globally popular play with productions everywhere from New Zealand to Africa. Yet, the title still creates embarrassed shuffling of papers and flushed expressions when it’s mentioned.
In Calgary, the annual production has consistently sold out at the University of Calgary theatre and, according to director Marsha Meidow, there are always plenty of men in attendance.
The stories that arose out of New York-based founder Eve Ensler interviewing 200 women from all walks of life and ethnicities are unflinching, often comedic glimpses into the struggles and suppression of females from around the world.
On March 16th, Femme Fatale Carnivale, a cabaret at Twisted Element celebrating the flirtatious, whimsical side of sexuality is bound to raise a few eyebrows, but local organizers say it’s a chance for anyone with an open mind and sense of play to take part in a fundraiser for The Vagina Monologues.
"It’s a celebration of positive sexuality," says Meidow, who has directed the Calgary production for the last four years.
"The Vagina Monologues can be quite heavy emotionally, so this event is lighter," she explains.
Local burlesque divas the Kabuki Guns Burlesque (KGB) will perform, along with a drag show and various circus-like acts and a bachelor/bachelorette auction.
Celebrating the art of seductive dance from the prohibition era to the present, KGB offer a "sassy" striptease with a tongue-in-cheek approach. The women also celebrate the genuine female form, with all its curves and bumps, while guiding audiences back to a time when the terms "sexy" and "mystery" were interchangeable.
"We strip to tease but it’s not a striptease," says master Sarah Moanies. "There are no ping pong balls in our act. It’s not full-frontal, in-your-face nudity."
She notes that sex or the suggestion of it abounds daily and it should be addressed.
"We’re inundated with sex every day, even in gum commercials. So why not profit from celebrating your femininity and sexuality?"
Their show often kicks off with Love Cats by the Cure and goes as far back as Vaudeville and the Dirty Thirties. But don’t expect any poles, lap dances or loonie tosses.
"We’ll show you a little, but we won’t show you everything," she says coyly.
A carnival-like atmosphere with cotton candy and performers on stilts will keep the evening festive and breezy, and funds raised will go to offset the production costs of The Vagina Monologues.
This is the fourth year Meidow will be directing the show and she says even though the script is the same, the diversity of the women who perform keeps it fresh time after time.
"It’s so different every year," she says. "Once you have a new cast, it’s like a new play."
Meidow says despite sold-out shows and a great deal of support, there has been some opposition to the play on the U of C campus, and not everyone is comfortable with terms such as "vagina warrior."
"People were ripping the posters down and writing derogatory things in their place," she says. "That just pumped me up even more."
For Meidow it’s more than a labour of love, it’s also therapy. Coming from a background of abuse and prostitution, she was able to put herself through the Women’s Studies program at the University of Western Ontario, graduating in 2002.
During her second year as director, she was raped by someone she knew and trusted. It shook her ability to trust others to the core, but she found strength and a voice in the Monologues.
"At first, I was really, really defeated. I had been working so hard to save my life," she says, referring to her battle with addictions that led to her spending time in a psychiatric hospital.
She says her story and those of the women she counsels at the YWCA Safe Haven prove Canada is far from idyllic for women and that abuse and violence are more common than we know. When asked how many more times she intends to direct the show, she is resolute. "When violence against women stops, we’ll stop making The Vagina Monologues." |
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