A one-night performance of The Vagina Monologues will be staged at the New Wimbledon Theatre on Tuesday 20th November.
The show stars Emmerdale beauty Hayley Tamaddon who returns to The Vagina Monologues to join newcomer Vicky Entwistle, of Coronation Street fame, and Clare Buckfield, who thrilled and charmed the nation when she skated through to the Dancing on Ice finals.
Alongside her Emmerdale credentials, Hayley Tamaddon has won both Dancing on Ice and Soapstar Superchef. She has also starred in many musicals such as The Rocky Horror Show, Spamalot and Mamma Mia!
Vicky Entwistle played Janice Battersby in Coronation Street for many years but is no stranger to the stage. Amongst her theatre credits she has been on a Hull Truck tour with Like a Virgin and has recently finished a UK tour of Funny Peculiar.
Clare Buckfield is a recent runner up on the hugely popular Dancing on Ice. Her career has encompassed work in both stage and screen beginning with Grange Hill and then 2.4 Children.
The Vagina Monologues has always attracted a remarkable cast of national and international stars of the highest calibre. The West End run included such stars as Maureen Lipman, Sophie Dahl, Dannii Minogue and Jenni Éclair.
We caught up with the show’s producer Mark Goucher who was quick to praise the cast.
“We have a fantastic cast, they’re really, really great. We don’t often let the same women do the show. Every new company that comes to us do it really different and make it feel really fresh,” he said.
“What’s lovely is that they always seem to get on extremely well together and these girls are no different. They’re on the road for a long time, nearly 10 weeks but they’ve all got on terribly well together.”
The cast and crew will no doubt be hoping to receive the same warm reception they have enjoyed in other parts of the country during this UK tour.
“I saw the show a few weeks ago in Canterbury and there were 1000 women there and it’s going really, really well. They seemed to enjoy it very much,” said Mark.
“Some of the monologues in the show are comedic and very funny and others are very serious – they are about women who have been abused and women who have been raped.
“In order to show the serious vibe of some of the issues, it’s done through comedy. People find it funny and very moving.
“Some of the monologues I still find myself getting emotional about, particularly when they’re performed very well, like they are with this cast.”
Eve Ensler, the show’s writer and creator, has become an inspirational figure throughout the world. Not only has she established the international women’s charity V-Day, but she continues to work tirelessly to end violence and abuse suffered by women everywhere.
V-Day receives a portion of the ticket sales from each performance of The Vagina Monologues.
Since 2001 the West End and touring productions of The Vagina Monologues have raised over £300,000 helping girls and women in this country to overcome abuse, rape and violence.
Last year Eve Ensler was awarded the Isabelle Stevenson Award, a special non-competitive Tony Award, in recognition of her humanitarian, social and charitable work, and the foundation of the V-Day movement.
The tour will also be showing at the Richmond Theatre on Thursday 29 November.
For information and tickets for the Wimbledon show please visit: http://www.atgtickets.com/venues/new-wimbledon-theatre/
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