Mayor Megan Barry To Join ABE For 2017 VAGINA MONOLOGUES Benefit Performance

Nashville mayor Megan Barry will join Actors Bridge Ensemble (ABE) for its V-Day Nashville 2017 benefit performance of Eve Ensler's award-winning The Vagina Monologues on Friday, February 17, at City Winery, 609 Lafayette Street.

Actors Bridge first produced the Nashville premiere of The Vagina Monologues in 2001 in a collaboration with Vanderbilt University, directed by Actors Bridge producing artistic director Forrister. This will be ABE's 9th V-Day production.

For the 2017 production, Forrister once again directs a cast that includes, in addition to Mayor Barry, Anastasia Brown, Sunny Spyridon, Tracy Gershon, Sharon Dixon Gentry, Layne Sasser, Bridget Berger, Kim Bretton, CJ Tucker, Tamiko Robinson Steele, Rebekah Durham, Nailah Ajamu, Aisling Fenelon, Gabrielle Saliba, Sejal Mehta, Rebecca Spindler, Whitney Daane, Stephanie Pruitt and the GRRRLS of Act Like a GRRRL.

"Year after year, I watch The Vagina Monologues change women's lives: cast members and audiences alike," says Forrister. "It's often the beginning of a conversation women have never had out loud. Many of us were separated from our bodies through shame or violence at a very young age and have never had the courage to speak of our experiences, ask questions or discover we are not alone. The Vagina Monologues gives us this opportunity in an atmosphere of support and celebration."

"One of my favorite parts of being mayor is the excitement and joy I see on the faces of little girls when they find out that a woman can be mayor," explains Mayor Megan Barry.

"Empowering little girls and women of all ages through events such as 'Act Like a GRRRL Day' helps to keep the forward momentum towards a more fair and equitable society. The Vagina Monologues offers a wonderful opportunity for women to come together and share our stories, in the process learning that while we all have unique experiences in life, others have probably had similar experiences that can inform and enlighten our own."

"Our connection to Megan Barry began when she was in the Metro Council and sponsored a resolution naming March 8, 2011 'Act Like a GRRRL Day in Nashville' in celebration of the GRRRLS representing the United States at the 100th anniversary celebration of International Women's Day in Costa Rica," Forrister says.

"Then, when she ran for Mayor, she joined our 'A GRRRL is' selfie campaign with a photo captioned 'A GRRRL is running to be the next mayor of Nashville.' The GRRRLS are beyond thrilled that she's going to share the stage with them this year!"

Last year, more than 5,800 V-Day benefits were held around the world raising funds and awareness towards ending violence against women. These highly successful events raised over $5 million through performances of The Vagina Monologues and A Memory, A Monologue, A Rant as part of the V-Day 2016 College and Community Campaigns.

Proceeds from the Nashville V-Day production will help support Act Like a GRRRL scholarships and offer teenage girls in financial need the tools to find their voices, speak their truths and develop the confidence to stand up for themselves and their beliefs.

Performance Schedule: Friday, February 17, doors open at 5 p.m., with the show at 6:30 p.m.

Venue Information: City Winery Nashville, 609 Lafayette Street, Nashville 37203

Ticket Prices: General Admission tickets are $30; for tickets, go to www.citywinery.com/nashville/tickets/vaginamonolgues021717

Parking: There is limited street parking in the surrounding area. City Winery offers valet parking on site for $5.

About The Vagina Monologues: Hailed by The New York Times as "funny" and "poignant" and by the Daily News as "intelligent" and "courageous," The Vagina Monologues, which was first performed off-Broadway by Ensler, dives into the mystery, humor, pain, power, wisdom, outrage and excitement buried in women's experiences. Ensler has performed the play to great acclaim throughout the world - from Zagreb to Santa Barbara, from London to Seattle, from Jerusalem to Oklahoma City. Villard Books/Random House first published The Vagina Monologues, which includes a foreword by Gloria Steinem, in February 1998. A special edition was released in hardcover and paperback in February 2008 in honor of V-Day's ten year anniversary.

About V-Day: V-Day is a global activist movement to end violence against women and girls that raises funds and awareness through benefit productions of Playwright/Founder Eve Ensler's award winning play The Vagina Monologues and other artistic works. The V-Day movement has raised over $120 million; educated millions about the issue of violence against women and the efforts to end it; crafted international educational, media and PSA campaigns; reopened shelters; and funded over 13,000 community-based anti-violence programs and safe houses in Democratic Republic of Congo, Haiti, Kenya, South Dakota, Egypt and Iraq.

A V-Day Campaign is a catalyst for mobilizing women and men to heighten awareness about violence against women and girls. By creating this global community, V-Day strives to empower women to find their collective voices and demand an end to the violence that affects one in three women in the U.S and around the world. vday.org

V-Day Nashville is a local effort within the worldwide context of the 2017 V-Day Campaign.

About Act Like a GRRRL: Act Like a GRRRL (ALAG) is an autobiographical writing and performance program that empowers teenage girls to write about their lives and transform their thoughts into monologues, dances and songs for public performance. As GRRRLS find their voice and speak their truths on stage, they develop the self-confidence and leadership skills to live more empowered lives. At the precise moment that our culture tells them to "sit down and shut up," ALAG prompts GRRRLS to "stand up and speak out."

Participants report a significant increase in self-respect, academic excellence, improved relationships with family / friends, intolerance for bullying and hope for the future. All ALAG graduates have gone on to college. Now accepting applications for ALAG 2017. Apply at www.actlikeagrrrl.org

About Actors Bridge Ensemble: For the last 21 years, Actors Bridge has been a force on Nashville's cultural landscape. As an actor training program, we have worked with over 4500 students who have gone on to perform on local, regional and national stages as well as film and television. Most local productions include performers influenced by Actors Bridge training. As a professional theatre company, our mission is to tell the stories that impact our community by producing provocative and socially relevant theatre, creating new theatrical works, showcasing emotionally authentic ensemble acting and nurturing theatre artists at any stage in their professional development to take bold creative risks. We have produced over 90 plays, including 14 world premieres and 50 Nashville premieres. The company is led by co-founder Vali Forrister. For more information, go to www.actorsbridge.org.

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