A Special Night Out in the City

On December 5th, the Belize Family Life Association sponsored a performance of excerpts from The Vagina Monologues as well as some pieces written by a local writer, Ms. Myrna Manzanares (also the director of the show), called The Vagina Speaks Out. Ginnie heard the ad on the radio and immediately began contacting people to plan a night out for dinner and the show. She was joined by some friends from the city and some other PCVs. It was a fun girls night out – we met for dinner before and then made our way over to the Bliss Centre for the Performing Arts where we met up with our lone male attendee (though there were plenty of men in the audience, he was the only one from PC to make it to the show) for an art exhibit and the performance. The show was amazing and it was made even better by the audience commentary and interaction. Theatre in Belize is something we definitely love!

The art exhibit was a special one put together in honor of the show. The two artists were charged with taking everyday objects and painting them in such a way as to interpret a vagina. The artwork was beautiful and one of the girls even bought a piece. It was all a nice, subtle way to show respect for a woman's body and to add to the message of the night.

The show was held among the several events planned for 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, an international campaign dedicated to the elimination of acts of violence against women throughout the world. This year's theme was "Human Rights for Women <--> Human Rights for All." Through education, outreach, and activism women and men continue to become empowered to end gender-based violence.

The fantastic performers