The piece began with a description of moaning.

Examples followed.

Cara McFall, a freshman from Brentwood, Tenn., demonstrated each of the moans as part of the women’s studies department’s presentation of “The Vagina Monologues” last Thursday night in the Gordon Wilson Theater Lab.

The monologue,”The Woman Who Liked to Make Vaginas Happy,” was about a female sex worker who loved moans.

There was the Catholic moan. The WASP moan. The Grace Slick moan.

The crowd of about 250 reacted with embarrassed giggles and laughter as McFall groaned and wriggled in the middle of the stage.

Every seat in the 140 seat auditorium was filled. Over 100 people sat in the floor near the stage or stood in the back. Doors were closed by 6:30, and the show began 15 minutes early. About 30 people were turned away.

“We expected a large crowd,” said Pikeville junior Michelle Blackburn, who performed in the presentation. “But I didn’t expect us to have to turn people away.”

Admission to the show was $5, and all money raised went to Hope Harbor Sexual Trauma Center. Additional money was raised for Hope Harbor from the sale of vagina cookies, $1 each.

Overall, “The Vagina Monologues” raised $1,172 for Hope Harbor.

The nine actresses, barefoot and clad in red and black, performed diverse pieces about topics like rape, menstruation and orgasms.

At times the audience applauded, roared with laughter, and was encouraged to shout out loud. The audience became quiet and solemn during more serious pieces.

Before the show, attendees viewed a feminist art show, read statistics regarding violence against women and snacked on refreshments, including vagina-shaped cookies.

Blackburn appeared in five monologues and said she received the greatest reactions from the piece, “My Vagina was My Village.” The monologue is the account of a young Bosnian woman who is repeatedly raped by soldiers.

“I had a lot of friends who came to see me, and afterwards they came up to me and said, ‘I was crying during the part’ and, ‘You were so good,'” Blackburn said. “That’s what I wanted to hear. That’s what I was hoping to get across to the audience.”

Litchfield junior Carla DePoyster decided to attend “The Vagina Monologues” after passing up a chance to see it last year. She said she really enjoyed the performance.

“It was excellent and sometimes shocking,” she said. “I think, deep inside, every girl can relate to what was in the play.”

Lebanon sophomore Jesse Osbourne was one of the men in the audience. He said he didn’t know what to expect before the performance. After the show, however, he said he was glad he came.

“I just really enjoyed it,” he said. “It was good that they were able to talk about the stuff that was in the play … But you could look around the audience and see some shocked faces at times.”

Reach Clare Lowther at [email protected].