I have just had one of the funniest experiences at the Theatre Royal Bath in years when I went to see the The Vagina Monologues on Saturday.
Imagine my surprise when I read the review in your paper by the reporter Craig Evry; it made me wonder if he had actually seen the same play as me.
To compare the style with stand-up comedy is quite bizarre, as there were three actresses seated on stools retelling anecdotes from a survey of 200 women, some very funny/sad/poignant but never in a joke-telling style.
There was never a feminist rant or so-called penis envy in the show all night (which I did expect) the only item I presume he's referring to is when Lesley Joseph announced a very interesting fact about the clitoris having twice the nerve endings than a penis.
The cheer that accompanied this fact was more of a celebration and "aren't we lucky" reaction than mocking the penis.
Fortunately most of the men in the audience were laughing as well and yes there were uncomfortable segments when the atrocities of Bosnia and female circumcision were addressed, but these items are necessary to make us aware, as unfortunately they are still going on in the world.
Millions of pounds have been raised to help protect these women, all through putting on this show in America and Europe.
The main point is that afterwards I couldn't stop laughing and talking about the show with my friends, which to me proves what a success it was and I feel so sorry for Craig Evry as he obviously felt intimidated by the content and completely missed the plot. Otherwise, he would've learnt quite a bit about how women really tick!
Julia Bender,
Woolley Street,
Bradford on Avon.
Our reviewer would like to point out that, in his opinion:
1. The phrase stand up comedy should not be taken literally;
2. Charity fundraising events should be judged on their own merits and not the worthiness of their cause;
3. Celebrating one sex's good fortune clearly implies superiority.
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