Once again, our wonderful fellow Sewanee students showcased their humor, anger, love, and pain at the annual Sewanee Monologues. Put on by the Women’s Center and inspired by Eve Ensler’s “Vagina Monologues,” former Wick co-director Grace Greenwell created Sewanee Monologues as an event meant to showcase the stories of Sewanee students, and as described by current Wick co-director Kathryn Wilgus, it “serves as an important reminder to our campus community that not all struggles are manifest on the surface and that many of our peers have realities and experiences that are varied from our own. Through Sewanee Monologues, the Wick provides a platform for student voices, encourages conversation among our peers, and often challenges mainstream beliefs and demands change for those seeking justice.” Kathryn described the tremendous amount of work that goes into planning and executing this event, from receiving monologues, basic editing for grammar and assigning performers to printing posters, advertising for the event, and hiring counselors from the Wellness Center to be available to students.
(Photo courtesy of Humans of Sewanee)
In light of Sewanee Monologue’s success, we interviewed a few of the performers to hear more about their Sewanee Monologue experience. Kirk Murphy, whose Sewanee Monologue was a moving performance that focused on issues of police brutality, cyber bullying, racism, modern-day slavery, sexual assault, obliviousness, and oppression, described the feeling of being on stage in Guerry Auditorium performing in front of his fellow Sewanee students: “The whole experience was epic. I love the sound of a silent crowd. It always does something to me. It’s a blessing to have so many people see power in my words. ” He continued, describing the goal of his monologue, saying, “I have the same goal every time, and that goal is to make folks feel me. I wanted to not only tell my story but to make the audience visualize my story as well. There are a lot of people that don’t agree with my tone and the things that I say when I perform. But my purpose is to not make you agree with me. My purpose is to challenge your thinking.” In his explanation about mentioning of yikyak in his monologue, Kirk gave his thoughts on the controversial app. “I don’t have yikyak. Yikyak says a lot about one’s character. In my eyes, it’s the most cowardly app ever made. I’m specifically talking about those who use yikyak as a way to bully people on campus. Just thinking about yikyak gives me a bad taste in my mouth. With my poem, I wanted those cowards to experience the feeling of being given an unwanted spotlight on campus.” Inspired by Sewanee itself, Kirk used his monologue to put important issues on display to push for change to be made on campus, and he has only received positive feedback about his powerful performance.
(Photo courtesy of Brook Vann)
Kathryn Wilgus also candidly described her Sewanee Monologue experience. “I was tired. I was basically done sharing that part of my story with near five hundred people, some I knew and some I didn’t, and I didn’t know how to feel or if I even felt anything besides wanting to be done bearing my soul. But after I got off the stage and was met with so many people saying, “thank you for sharing your story,” and “you did so well last night!” it felt like it was all worth it.” Kathryn’s monologue also focused on important issues on Sewanee’s campus, mainly sexual assault and harassment were the main issues I covered, but I also delved into the virgin/whore dichotomy, masculine and feminine stereotypes and roles, reproductive justice, drinking culture, hook up culture, sexuality, and language. “I wanted to convey through my monologue the experiences that so many women face on a daily basis. I want more people, men and women alike, to practice the principle of not judging a book by its cover. Too often, women are subjected to the kind of everyday harassment, shame, and harmful language that is overwhelmingly undeserved. The English language is full of insults that seek to defame and diminish women–insults that are often flung at men to harm their masculinity–and people hardly understand the implications or consequences of their actions. I hoped that by sharing some of my own experiences and putting a face to them, people would begin to take responsibility for their actions and work to change their previous perceptions,” Kathryn said as she shared the goal of her monologue. To summarize the night, “Overall, I think we all did a great job of conveying all of the important messages and ideas presented in Sewanee Monologues–whether of the inception of the program itself, or the ideas that submissions focused on. I was proud that we were able to represent these issues and do it in a venue that suits much of the student body.”
So thank you to Sewanee Monologues, to the Wick, to those who performed, and to those who submitted. Thank you for your stories and your honesty, and for bringing your experiences to the Sewanee community. YSR
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(Photo courtesy of Brook Vann)