This weekend, a group of women take the stage at Wharton Center to share stories and monologues from Eve Ensler’s interviews with women worldwide.
Meet some of the women behind "The Vagina Monologues" show here.
Janelle Moulding, co-director, MSU alumna
Alumna Janelle Moulding began her involvement in “The Vagina Monologues” during her sophomore year as a student in the Residential College in the Arts and Humanities. She slowly moved up the ranks from production crew to co-director post-graduation.
Now, working as a youth advocate at a homeless shelter for teens in Lansing, she hopes to eventually become a director of programs or even run her own shelter someday.
“Working with youth, specifically homeless and disadvantaged youth, that’s what I’d really like to do,” Moulding said.
Moulding cited the extremely welcoming and loving community of those involved in “The Vagina Monologues” as her reason for returning after graduation.
“It would mean more to me than anything to direct the show and have it still be a part of my life even though I’m no longer a student,” she said.
Dolores Sinistaj, participant, James Madison College senior
James Madison senior Dolores Sinistaj is double majoring in political theory and constitutional democracy as well as international relations. She has never performed before, but has been active in women’s rights activities in the past and enjoys theater.
Specifically, Sinistaj is passionate about the rights and welfare of women in areas of conflict, which is the subject of her senior research proposal this spring. She is also a member of the Model United Nations and served as a committee assistant chairperson this year pertaining to those issues she holds dear.
This year she will be acting as one of four speakers in the performance of the monologue “Wear and Say,” which focuses on the different experiences of women in regard to how they view their own vaginas.
Of the overall impact of “The Vagina Monologues,” Sinistaj said she believes there’s something for everyone to take away from the performance “whether you personally identify as a woman, came from a woman or just like women.”
Olivia Brenner, participant, James Madison College freshman
This is James Madison freshman Olivia Brenner’s first year being involved with the show. After seeing last year’s performance and its powerful effects on the audience, she chose to become involved and will be introducing a number of the monologues for this performance.
Although she hasn’t been involved in a similar production in the past, Brenner has previously been involved in feminist activism, including a march in Lansing for women’s reproductive rights.
Brenner hopes people will see the performance and feel the sense of community most people don’t perceive, because a woman’s body can be seen as a taboo topic.
Laura Swanson, co-director, media and information senior
Media and information senior Laura Swanson first learned about “The Vagina Monologues” while during her involvement with the Sexual Assault and Relationship Violence Prevention Program on campus.
She appeared on the television program “Dr. Phil” last year for her involvement in the documentary film “Every Two Minutes.” Swanson was also one of two recipients for last year’s iAspire Grant, an award given to students fighting sexual assault on college campuses.
For Swanson, it isn’t just her empathy for others that drives her to spread the message — she is also a survivor of sexual assault.
“The experience affected my self-esteem and my self-worth and it really made me question why I was expected to be shamed,” Swanson told Dr. Phil last December. “The turning point that made me really want to get involved in this issue was when a friend disclosed her story to me. I realized that this is so common. This has happened to so many people.”
A firm believer in women’s rights advocacy, she believes this show is unique in combining that message with powerful artistry, and hopes audiences will leave with a greater empathy and understanding for the experiences many women go through.
