Eve Ensler’s Award-Winning Play, “The Vagina Monologues,” To Performed At Southampton Arts Center In Celebration Of V-Day

A special reading of The Vagina Monologues will be presented on Saturday, February 24 at 2 and 7 p.m. at Southampton Arts Center. The Retreat, a local Hamptons organization, will beneficiary of the net proceeds. The 20th anniversary of the award-winning Eve Ensler play and founding of V-Day is certainly something to celebrate this year. This global activist movement has fought for two decades to end violence against women and girls.

This year’s Vagina Monologues will be directed by Jenna Mate and produced by Valerie diLorenzo and Amy Kirwin. The cast includes Kathleen Carthy, Retreat Director Loretta Davis, Valerie diLorenzo, Carolann DiPirro, Rebecca Edana, Legislator Bridget Fleming, Tina Jones, Amy Kirwin, Lola Lama, Kristen Lowman, Amayrani Martinez, Cindy Pease Roe, Susan Stout, and more.

“Eve Ensler’s work, whether The Vagina Monologues, One Billion Rising, or her global social justice work, is and has been the thrust of improving awareness and strengthening the voice of women in regard to healing from physical and sexual abuse no matter what walk of life we are from,” stated Kate Mueth, a participant in this year’s Vagina Monologues. “Because of Eve’s tireless and creative fight for righting this global wrong, so very many of us have found a place to come together in powerful purpose and as vocal advocates for change. I am always pleased and honored to be part of Eve’s outreach and am so glad Jenna and Valerie have brought me on board with their beautiful local efforts.”

V-Day activists have raised consciousness, changed laws to protect women and girls, funded rape crisis centers and domestic violence shelters, educated communities, and raised well over $100 million in urgently needed funds for groups doing the essential work of ending violence. For its 20th anniversary, V-Day is calling on activists around the world to Rise, Resist, and Unite.

The New York Times called The Vagina Monologues “probably the most important piece of political theater of the last decade.” Written by Eve Ensler, The Vagina Monologues is an Obie Award-winning whirlwind tour of a forbidden zone which introduces a wildly divergent gathering of female voices, including a six-year-old girl, a septuagenarian New Yorker, a vagina workshop participant, a woman who witnesses the birth of her granddaughter, a Bosnian survivor of rape, and a feminist happy to have found a man who liked to look at it.

The Retreat’s mission is to provide safety, shelter and support for victims of domestic abuse and to break the cycle of family violence. In pursuit of that mission, The Retreat provides direct services to victims of domestic violence and sexual assault, their families and the Eastern Long Island community through a 24-hour bilingual hotline, counseling, legal advocacy, prevention education, and emergency shelter. Violence prevention education and other supportive programs are available in Nassau and Suffolk Counties. For more info, visit www.theretreatinc.org.

Tickets are $15, $12 for seniors, and $10 for students. Tickets are available online at www.brownpapertickets.com. The 2 p.m. performance will be followed by a panel discussion moderated by Loretta Davis and the 7 p.m. performance will be followed by a Q&A with the cast and meet and greet reception.

Southampton Arts Center is located at 25 Jobs Lane in Southampton. For more information, call 631-283-0967.