The room fills with the sound of snapping fingers.
The room is heartbreakingly silent.
The room erupts in laugher.
The room shouts in unison, “F*** THAT!”
In this room sits nine women who spill the content of their heart and soul onto the stage as they share their own personal memoir to the audience.
These memoirs are stories about identities, bodies, and histories that are silenced each and every day. In support of marginalized and oppressed gender identities, the Vagina Memoirs is devastatingly difficult, powerfully true, and overwhelmingly inspiring as cast members shatter the silence with their stories. The goal is to challenge the notion that some things should not be talked about as these women let their voices finally be heard. Domestic violence, drug abuse, societal expectations, eating disorders, sexual assault, discrimination, love, identity crisis, sexuality, prejudice, death, disabilities…These topics aren’t easy to swallow. Cast members spend three months perfecting their memoirs that may leave tears streaming down your cheeks, ignite anger in your soul, or carve a deep pit in your stomach.
The Vagina Memoirs is put on by the AS Women’s Center as an annual production at Western open to students and the greater Bellingham community. This year the show took place Wednesday, Feb. 25 through Saturday, Feb. 28. In 2010, the production received national attention as the winner of the Best Student-Driven Program Award. The truths expressed at the Vagina Memoirs are nothing short of empowering. Everyone has a voice. Each one matters. You are not alone.