Continuing a popular tradition, Grand Valley State University students, faculty and staff members will present three performances of Eve Ensler's "The Vagina Monologues" in Allendale and at Wealthy Theatre in Grand Rapids.
Now in its sixth year as a GVSU production, more than 50 cast members are involved in Ensler's Obie Award-winning play. Actors will talk frankly about their bodies, their sexuality and, for some, their experiences with violence. Proceeds from ticket sales will benefit the Grand Rapids YWCA, Center for Women in Transition in Holland and GVSU's Women's Center. Last year, more than $12,000 was raised.
Performances are February 14, 7:30 p.m., in the Louis Armstrong Theatre, Performing Arts Center on the Allendale Campus; February 16, 7:30 p.m. at Wealthy Theatre, 1130 Wealthy St. in Grand Rapids; and February 18, 2 p.m., at Wealthy Theatre. The production is sponsored by GVSU's Women's Center and funded by the Nokomis Foundation.
Tickets are $20 and $10 for students. They are available at the Kirkhof Center (20/20 Desk), DeVos Center Student Services (101B) and Box Office in the Performing Arts Center. Tickets can also be purchased at Meijer locations or by calling StarTickets Plus at (800) 585-3737 or visiting www.starticketsplus.com.
Around the world, more than 2,700 performances of "Vagina Monologues" and other activities will be staged through V-Day campaigns. What started nine years ago as grassroots efforts to stop violence against women and girls, the V-Day campaign has grown into a global campaign that has raised more than $40 million worldwide to support anti-violence programs.
This year for the first time on Grand Valley's campus, men will be incorporated in V-Day activities. Kiersten Schulte, one of the student organizers, said men will staff information tables in the Kirkhof Center and pass out white ribbons in an effort to gain support against rape and other violent crimes against women and children.
Each year, the national V-Day campaign chooses a spotlight campaign to raise awareness for a particular issue. This year, the spotlight organization is Women in Conflict Zones, because, Schulte said, "War exponentially increases crimes of violence against women and girls."
