My Body No Choice

Commissioned by Molly Smith, Artistic Director of Arena Stage in Washington, DC, My Body No Choice features monologues from eight of America’s most dynamic female playwrights on women’s choices and bodily autonomy; from the ability to choose—or not—to have an abortion, to the freedom to choose one’s body size, to making a decision around when to end one’s life.

From Molly Smith: “For far too long, women have been afraid to tell their stories. The national conversation around gay rights changed dramatically when people came out to their families, friends, and neighbors. Suddenly everyone knew someone who was gay, and being gay was normalized. Now, women need to change the conversation around choices that are being made for them around the autonomy of their bodies, in large part by people who have no experience of what it is like to be a woman. We need to tell our stories; it’s past time.”

Monologues by 
Lee Cataluna, 
Fatima Dyfan, 
Lisa Loomer, 
Dael Orlandersmith, 
Sarah Ruhl, 
Mary Hall Surface, 
V (formerly Eve Ensler),
and “Anonymous”

This staged reading event is produced here in Arizona by the Bridge Initiative and Ronin Theatre Company, in collaboration with ASU Kerr, with contributions from B3 Theater, Inc., Laughing Pig Theatre, Megaw Theatre and Actors’ Studio, Order Chaos Theater Company, Southwest Shakespeare Company, and Space 55.