The Vagina Monologues – Zonta 111 of Colombo Advocacy Project and Fundraiser

The Zonta Club III of Colombo presents Eve Ensler’s ‘The Vagina Monologues’ as part of its ‘No to Violence’ Initiative to create awareness of the senselessness of violence towards women and children to audiences in Sri-Lanka. Poor-Box Productions, an acclaimed award-winning theatre company based in Mumbai India, will be flown down for the event.

The Zonta club believe that it was necessary to bring ‘The Vagina Monologues’ down because of its topicality. Violence and abuse affect women from all kinds of backgrounds every day. According to a UN Survey on Violence Against Women in Sri Lanka, a woman is raped every 90 minutes. Additionally, as identified by the group Women for Rights, 95% of women who use public transport in Sri Lanka experience sexual harassment. As art has the power to change attitudes and encourage people to act, the Zonta Club III of Colombo aims to generate broader attention for the fight to stop violence against women and girls, including rape and other forms of sexual violence, through a benefit performance by educating and changing social attitudes towards this pressing issue. Zonta believes that women ought to spend their lives flourishing and creating rather than merely surviving and recovering from horrific brutalities.

The play features various monologues by women, touching on feminine subjects such as sex, love, rape, menstruation, birth and more, and tackles them in a hilarious yet poignant way. It has spawned V-Day on the 14th of February, a global activist movement to end violence against women and girls. Each member of the audience will be affected deeply in various ways, depending on their own experiences.

1. Why did you decide to bring Vagina Monologues down?

I had a clear understanding of Eve Ensler's intentional purpose of the play, and the message it conveys. As a person who loves and works with drama I know that theatre is a powerful medium through which awareness can be created, hence this project on advocacy plus a fundraiser.

2. Why do you think the audience in Sri Lanka needs to see the Vagina Monologues?

Because the reported incidences of violence against women and girls is on the rise. It has also reached pandemic proportions around the world. As Zontians it’s up to us to live by the mandate of the club to empower women and foster their well-being. We also believe this play is more relevant now than it was, when it was performed 10 years ago, don’t you think?

3. What do you hope the reception will be? 

Absolutely positive! The Sri-Lankan audience will lap it up! We are giving the audience what they need.

By Marissa van Eyck