MSU's “The Vagina Monologues,” part of the V-Day movement, has been cast for this year.
V-Day, as defined by the organization’s website, is “a global activist movement to end violence against women and girls… (and) a catalyst that promotes creative events to increase awareness, raise money, and revitalize the spirit of existing anti-violence organizations.”
Co-director and media and information senior Laura Swanson said this year’s beneficiary is The Firecracker Foundation, which aids children who have survived sexual trauma.
About 50 women auditioned for this year’s show, Swanson said.
Swanson said she was “pleasantly surprised to see more community members audition for the show,” since they have been trying to branch out into the community and let interested individuals know the production is not just for students, even though it is an MSU organization.
“Not only are we happy to have a few more community members, but we are incredibly excited about having the executive director of this year's beneficiary (Tashmica Torok) in our production.”
Swanson said she is most excited to watch the cast grow and connect with each other, but she hopes this show will do more by sparking further discussion and awareness of the prevalence of this violence throughout the world and within the MSU community.
“Yes, this is a production, but we have a purpose bigger than that. We are doing this show for the women who lived these stories and to help our community become a safer and more reliable place for survivors of sexual violence," she said.
While it is easy to be made uncomfortable by and ignore this topic, Swanson said, “(The Vagina Monoluges) is here to bring this discussion forward and to help people connect and relate to this issue so that we, as a community, can work to end it.”
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