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The Vagina Monologues
- Tour
Playwright - Eve Ensler
Director - Irina Brown
Designer - Bunny Christie
Cast - Michelle Gomez, Miriam Margolyes and Una McLean
Lighting Designer - Chris Davey
Company - Old Vic Productions plc - Cast see
end of review
Venue - Edinburgh Festival Theatre 0131 529 6000 www.eft.co.uk
Dates & Times - 30
Oct - 2 Nov at 7:30pm
Tour Venues & Dates - see end of review
Seen to review at Edinburgh
Reviewers - Veera Airas for the female view and Alex Eades for
the Male one
A woman & a
man react to V
Verra: Let your sparks fly!
From the opening line this performance will take you on a roller-coaster
ride through the female centre, the vagina.
An ingenious piece of writing by Eve Ensler,drawn from her interviews
with many women, she has been able to take a subject that people would
normally see as vulgar and turn it in to a night of laughter, passion
and tears. It will liberate all your inhibitions and fears about the Vagina.
Performed in increasing numbers of countries, The Vagina Monologues has
won 1997 Obie Award and 2001 Elliot Norton Award.
Irina Brown (Former Artistic Director tof the Tron Theatre, Glasgow) has
directed the show so that even though there is very little physical movement,
the voices and mannerism of the performers will create a picture for the
audience. She ensures that the show is not pornographic and that the audience
can feel comfortable listening monologues about the female genitals.
Performed by three strong women Michelle Gomez, Miriam Margolyes
and Una McLean, who free the text from the paper with such enthusiasm
it is like they're telling their own stories and not someone else's. Their
voices verbalises what so many has wanted, but been to afraid to say.
Michelle Gomes even got the audience to shout out CUN* (the C word)!
The design is simple but effective. The whole stage is red with a huge
red V at the back. The letter is covered in light bulbs that show the
different mood of each piece. The V and all its lights is used to great
and mutiple effect with Miriam Margolyes!
Do not let this opportunity of liberation pass you by but let your sparks
fly!
© Veera Airas 30 October 2002
And now our male Reviewer - Alex Eades
Hardly Orgasmic.
Since the dawn of time, men have joked about their private parts and the
inadequacies of the opposite sex. The Vagina Monologues, as the title
quite subtly suggests, gives the women their overdue chance to talk about
themselves. Overdue, sadly, to the extent that a lot of it simply falls
flat as a Benny Hill or Carry On gag would now.
There are some genuinely funny moments, but these are down to the performances
rather than the quality of the script. Michelle Gomez is especially
good, whose energetic and comic performance raised a roar of laughter
on plenty of occasions. The whole cast look as if they are enjoying themselves,
which helps create a pleasant, intimate and relaxed atmosphere.
Admittedly, some of the gags are enough to tickle the funny bones, but
it just seems that there are only so many jokes you can tell before it
gets boring. Trying to get the audience to say an explicit word because
it's "naughty" is frankly rather tedious. It's not uncommon, funny, or
shocking, by any stretch of the imagination.
There are the more serious aspects such as rape and childbirth and they
are well done and very moving. But these moments come in patches and not
enough to justify the success of this play. But then again, I'm a guy,
so I'm probably wrong.
© Alex Eades. 30 October, 2002
Vagina monologues 2002 Autumn Tour details
-
30 Oct-2 Nov Edinburgh Festival Theatre 0131 529 6000
5-9 Nov Glasgow Theatre Royal 0141 332 9000
11-16 Nov Brighton Theatre Royal 01273 328 488
25-30 Nov London Richmond Theatre 020 8940 0088
Cast - Michelle Gomez, Miriam Margolyes and Una McLean
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