V-Day Production Draws Support from Hood Community

By: Hilary Lawch

Hood’s chapter of Equal Sex hosted a production of “A Memory, A Monologue, A Rant, and A Prayer” the weekend of Feb. 24 as part of the V-Day campaign.

The campaign aims to promote awareness to end violence against women all over the globe.

The performance was emotionally charged, beginning with a spoken piece involving the entire cast, as they stood throughout the auditorium among the audience.

Following the group piece were the individual monologues, which included stories from Rwanda and the event’s spotlight country,Haiti.

The audience was particularly moved by the night’s performance. Sophomore Alex Sardi said that:

“The performances were equally heartbreaking and energizing. It was beautiful to hear how the horrors of these women have been turned into a tool of empowerment and a call for love.”

For some people, the performance was a learning experience as well as an emotional journey.

Junior Emily Purcell is a member of the Gender and Sexuality Living Learning Community at Hood, and violence against women in Haiti had been their groups first discussion of the semester.

“We didn’t really grasp the intensity of what was going on, but people screaming monologues in your face and having a personal story gave you a better connection. It was really powerful.”

The night ended with the entire cast on stage with event coordinator Olivia Wolz delivering one last monologue.

90 percent of the event’s proceeds went to the Heartly House in Frederick.  The Heartly House serves Frederick County residents that have been victims of domestic violence and abuse.

While the remaining 10 went to the V-Day spotlight cause, which was the country of Haiti. The V-Day movement spotlights one country every year to shed light on the acts of violence occurring in that area.

Along with the production of “A Memory, A Monologue, A Rant, and a Prayer,” Equal Sex set up information tables prior to the event to answer questions and provide informthe Hood community about the V-Day movement.

V-Day has grown into an informational and emotionally charged event that many students support.