The MFJS Reporter — Winter 2020 T-R

“Not Your Mama’s Monologues,” is a series of fourteen short stories covering sexual health and awareness topics, specifically sexual violence, that are written by anonymous survivors. As Katy Constantinides, a fourth year student and also one of the three directors of the monologues, took the stage, the crowd went completely silent. The show was about to begin.

“I would like to start off the show by acknowledging the fact that our University sits on stolen, indigenous land,” said Constantinides in her opening statements to the crowd.

This opening statement set the mood for the entire show. This was not a show about sexual violence, this was a show about standing up for people in need.

The show officially began with a monologue titled “The Dangerous Myth of the ‘Ideal’ Survivor” read by Maya Piñon. This is a piece highlighting that sexual assault survivors could be anyone, but mainly about how we, the people, the students, can upset the stigma and solve the problem of sexual assault on college campuses.

“Our biggest tool is the media,” read Piñon.

I could feel the tension in the room as this monologue was read, and it’s understandable, especially with the current climate surrounding sexual violence on our campus after the rise of the @WeCanDUBetter instagram page. Now, with the the reminder that we can do better in regards to sexual violence prevention and care, the monologues continued. 

Some were immensely humorous, like the story “My Angry Vagina,” read by Olivia Dewitt, which was about, well, an unappreciated vagina. That said, the vast majority were serious, such as “My First Kiss,” read by Micaela Iveson, a story in which talks about a six year old girl being sexually assaulted by her summer camp counselor.

Many more stories were told, and honestly it’s really difficult to explain just what this experience was like, as every story took the audience on their own emotional roller coaster.

“It definitely had its emotional ups and downs,” said Jakob Tharpe, a fourth year English student.

Each story received such different responses from the audience. One second people would be on the verge of tears, and the next bursting out laughing. 

“Some of the more intense stories made me angry, angry that this was happening in the first place … but overall it kept me positive because these are survivor stories, that there are survivors,” said Tharpe. 

We then talked about the most impactful monologues of the night. For Jakob, it was a monologue titled “Blueberry Hill,” also read by Iveson. Not only was this retelling of a gang rape extremely intense, as members of the audience were sitting with their hands over their mouths in silent grief and horror at the detail, but inspiring in how she was able to overcome this intense physical and mental trauma.

“I think monologues like that are what opens the door for empathy and to help people understand what survivors go through,” said Tharpe.

To be completely honest, Jakob’s words helped me to interpret how I felt about the show as a whole. The way that it allowed me to sympathize and empathize with survivors, but also allowed me to admire the courage and strength that it took for these amazing people who wrote these stories to overcome their struggles.

Overall, “Not Your Mama’s Monologues” is well worth the ten dollar donation for the ticket. It brings up in an eloquently blunt manner the vast issue of sexual and gender based violence. I strongly believe that it is something that everyone at this school should, no, needs to see.