They are “private parts” cloaked in “unmentionables”—but what is it about vaginas that makes people so uncomfortable? In this year’s production of Eve Ensler’s revolutionary “The Vagina Monologues,” Columbia and Barnard actresses and activists will not only mention vaginas but scream, chant, whisper, and sing about them. On Feb. 11 at 8 p.m., Feb. 12 at 2 p.m., and Feb. 13 at 3 p.m. in Roone Arledge Auditorium, the annual production will be a part of V-Day, a global movement founded by Ensler that performs the monologues in an effort to raise awareness and funds to end sexual violence against women. Tickets are $5 with CUID at the TIC, but director Gita Deo, BC ’12, warns that this will be more than just a play. “It’s not really a production—it’s more of an experience,” she said. Deo described how the lasting power of “The Vagina Monologues” comes from its presentation of an activist subject matter through a creative medium. “V-Day is a play, so it reaches a different type of audience that wouldn’t necessarily come to a discussion by Take Back the Night or the Rape Crisis Center,” Deo said. Many women who have participated in “The Vagina Monologues” testify to the liberating power of freely discussing the typically un-discussable. “Vaginas, for girls, are pretty much the most uncomfortable subject ever,” actress Morgaine Gooding-Silverwood, CC ‘14, said. “It ties in incredibly directly with that overall sense of repression and shame you are supposed to have as a woman. ... Vagina hatred, it’s something so bizarre,” Gooding-Silverwood said. After leaving an emotionally abusive relationship, Gooding-Silverwood put on a production of “The Vagina Monologues” at her high school. She was amazed at how powerful the experience was not just for herself but for the participants and the audience as well. “It was interesting because all those kids were at the point where they were really learning how to interact with each other. The girls are learning how to interact with men and the men are learning how to interact with women,” she said. This year, Deo and producer Luyang Liu, BC ’12, attempted to instill this sense of openness in their cast early on, asking them to artistically portray their vaginas as they would appear at the MoMA. But this is not where the vagina imagery ends. Sherill Marie Henriquez, CC ’13, constructed a giant vagina the performers are set to walk through. Deo and Liu, co-coordinator and outreach director for Take Back the Night respectively, volunteer alongside many of the actresses at St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital’s Crime Victims Treatment Center, where they voted to donate the majority of this year’s proceeds. Gooding-Silverwood said the center is currently facing a massive budget cut, and knowing the proceeds will help the victims inspires the cast. In addition to selling tickets, the cast petitioned to local businesses for donations. “We wanted to get the whole community involved,” publicity director Tehreem Rehman, CC ’13, said. The monologues themselves are capable of changing with the times. This year, “The Vagina Monologues” will spotlight the tragedy in Haiti, and the cast will donate an additional 10% of the proceeds to reconstruction. Also, an anonymous student monologue written about the recovery process after rape will be performed alongside Ensler’s originals. Gooding-Silverwood said the audience can expect more interactive participation and surprises than past performances. “Some people may watch ‘The Vagina Monologues’ and say it’s granola-eating hippies talking about their pussies,” Gooding-Silverwood joked. Little do they realize that punning, chanting, and drawing are also involved.