“Why don’t you like me?”

As children of the 90s (well, most of us anyway) I’m sure we all remember that episode of Friends in which Chandler is tricked into seeing that one-woman play by himself. You know the one: she opens by striding to the front of the stage screaming “Why don’t you like me?!”, then Chandler proceeds to squirm in his seat as she ploughs ahead with “Chapter One: My First Period…” Classic TV right there.

I could count on one hand the number of people who, when I mention that I am in the process of co-directing/co-producing Warwick Anti-Sexism Society’s (WASS) annual production of The Vagina Monologues to be performed in Week 9, DON’T respond with something along the lines of: “It’s like that shouty woman from Friends, isn’t it?” or, from my male friends in particular: “This is a trick isn’t it; you’re going to do to me what they did to Chandler!” I’ll admit it was funny the first few times, guys, but after a while it does get a tad exasperating, so to any snickering readers thinking about making the comparison, I would like to state here for the official record: no, darling, no. It’s not like that shouty woman from Friends.

Having said that, I do see why people may jump to that conclusion, or even shy away from the play as a result. God forbid that a woman may publically refer to some of the gorier details about being a woman. Periods, vaginas, body hair, childbirth…scary, right?

Well, no. Of the key problems that the exemplary playwright and women’s activist Eve Ensler highlights in the opening monologue is that we simply don’t talk about these things enough. As a result it becomes a fear of the unknown, like the monster under the bed: if you try to ignore it, it will only get bigger, hairier and scarier. It may surprise you to hear this, but roughly 50 percent of the people you meet in a day will have a vagina tucked away down there. Some may be bigger and hairier than others, but only in the way that some people are bigger and hairier. There is no set mould, no Hollywood standards of beauty to meet. They are as they are.

This, I feel, is the crux of The Vagina Monologues. It doesn’t set out to intimidate or creep anyone out; it is a space for the actors to convey as accurately as possible the complex relationships that women have with their bodies and sexualities, and by extension society’s attitudes towards them. It seems a shame then that the pervading first impression is one of novelty: people think they know what the play will be like, or hear the title and instantly think it isn’t for them, therefore conclude they don’t need to see it, thus missing out on a theatrical and social experience far beyond what they had expected.

Eve Ensler spent a number of years interviewing women from all walks of life on the subject of their vaginas and weaving their responses into monologues. According to Ensler, her interviewees were a little uncomfortable at first, but “once they got going, you couldn’t stop them!” The play certainly has its share of laughs: from a rapid-fire rallying cry over the evils of tampons and douche sprays – this is where I will admit ‘Why Don’t You Like Me’ seems to shine through – to one woman’s crusade to ‘reclaim’ a certain pejorative word assigned to the female genitalia (no points for guessing what that word could be).

Yet on a more serious note, for every moment of hilarity there is one of quiet reflection. I could waffle on and on about how great it is to be a woman, but the truth of the matter is that even in 2013, inequality, oppression, violence and the maltreatment of basic human rights as a result of gender are still rife. Say it with me: women do not have it easy. In recent years, those in high political positions have spoken of rape being “legitimate”, or “a gift from God”. Every news story detailing the abuse of yet another woman is only a fraction of what is reported. Importantly, these issues are in no way confined to places outside the UK: one of the charities that this year’s production of The Vagina Monologues is raising money for is CRASAC, or Coventry Rape and Sexual Abuse Centre, a local organisation which works tirelessly to provide confidential support for those who have been raped, sexually abused or assaulted. The Vagina Monologues makes no bones about confronting these sadly very real matters; the fact that the monologues are all based on real women’s stories makes the play an undeniably harrowing yet painfully honest theatrical and social experience.

I implore you to not let any of this dissuade you from buying a ticket; if anything, it’s all the more reason to. Yes, there are some horrific images described and some extremely sensitive issues confronted, but we mustn’t allow these to be swept under the rug. We mustn’t simply lie back and accept that the world is unchangeable. We still have a long way to go, but the journey is well underway. You may be aware of the global uprising that took place on Valentine’s Day of this year, a day appropriated as One Billion Rising, one billion being the number of women who will reportedly be raped or beaten in their lifetime, a day of international solidarity between women unified against violence and rising together for the sake of justice.

On a more local level, every penny raised from ticket sales for WASS’s production will go directly to two amazing charities: CRASAC, and V-Day, an international activist movement pioneered by Ensler herself geared towards ending violence against women for good. Everything that The Vagina Monologues stands for is a step in the right direction.

In conclusion: if you care about theatre, come join us for a whirlwind of emotion and some stirringly honest performances from some of Warwick’s finest actors. If you care about activism, come and be part of the ever-increasing wave of feminist action, generating a better future for women around the world. If you are a woman, a man, or somewhere in-between, come for an enlightening experience and find a new appreciation of the sexuality and strength of women. And if you are Chandler, stop squirming and get used to the fact that vaginas are here to stay.

Warwick Anti-Sexism Society presents ‘The Vagina Monologues’ will be performed on:

Wednesday 6th March, Taylor John’s House, Coventry

Thursday 7th March, Copper Rooms 2, University of Warwick

Saturday 9th March, The Band Factory, Leamington Spa.

All shows start at 7:30pm (doors at 7pm), £5.50 concessions, £6.50 full price, with all proceeds going directly to charity.