VDAY Taipei is back in its fourth year, and is joining more than 1500 other cities around the world in celebrating [color=violet]V to the 10th[/color], VDAY’s worldwide 10th anniversary.
Ten famous women in Taiwan will act as this year’s spokeswomen, including singers, writers, actresses, politicians, and the Discovery Channel’s Fun Taiwan host Janet Hsieh. Furthermore, our great restaurant partners California Grill and Citizen Cain will be having special VDAY menu items the entire month of March, with a portion of proceeds from those items going to VDAY.
As always, the money raised from VDAY will be donated to local charities. Last year, we raised nearly $1 million NT for our three beneficiaries, Taiwan Women’s Link (TWL), Taipei Association for the Promotion of Women’s Rights (TAPWR), and End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and Trafficking of Children for Sexual Purposes (ECPAT Taiwan). Please help us support their important work by donating, volunteering, or attending one or more of this year’s 10 great events.
You can visit their sites, respectively, at http://twl.ngo.org.tw, http://tapwer.womenweb.org.tw/english/english4.asp and http://www.ecpat.org.tw/english/index1.htm.
For more information about VDAY, e-mail vdaytaipei@gmail.com, join our group on Facebook (VDAY Taipei), or visit: http://www.vdaytaiwan.org.tw. Tickets to the Big Five will be on sale at http://www.ticket.com.tw.
Don’t miss these great events:
2/26 - VDAY’s Open House at California Grill
11am-10pm, 53-1 Yong Kang Street
Stop by California Grill any time this day to learn about VDAY Taipei, enter to win great prizes, and enjoy a delicious meal. Then come back any time during the month of March for the special V-Day salad, and a portion of your purchase will be donated to VDAY!
2/28 - ORIENTED Taipei’s Monthly Happy Hour
7-9 p.m. at Carnegie’s, No. 100, Sec. 2, AnHe Rd.
In conjunction with ORIENTED’s regular monthly Happy Hour, VDAY Taipei will be on hand with lots of goodies, raffles, and giveaways. For the third year in a row, ORIENTED will be donating the night’s admission fees to VDAY. RSVP at http://www.oriented.com/events/default.aspx?vb=detail&o=3956 for a special discount!
3/1 - The Clothesline Project
1-5pm, Shida Park
The Clothesline Project is an opportunity for those who have witnessed or experienced violence to tell their stories. Come by Shida Park to tell yours by decorating a t-shirt that will be hung on our clothesline, or simply come to see what stories others have to tell. Used t-shirt donations are welcome and encouraged.
3/1 - 2nd Annual Mr. Vagina Friendly Pageant at Citizen Cain
8p.m., 67 Dong Feng Street
Last year, V-Day and Citizen Cain crowned Taipei’s first Mr. Vagina Friendly. Come out to join the festivities this year on March 1st as a new batch of talented and great-looking men show why they’re vagina friendly. Vote for your favorite contestant by donating in his name, and also try your luck in our raffles, quiz giveaways, and a special guessing game. While you’re there, be sure to meet our professional dominatrix! Also, through the end of March, be sure to order Cain’s special V-Day drink, the Nookie, and 30% of your purchase will go to V-Day!
3/11 - Sababa’s VDAY Charity Happy Hour
7-9pm, Sababa Yong Kang, #3, Lane 12, Yong Kang Street
We close out our fundraising events with a delicious Happy Hour at Sababa Yong Kang. Check out Sababa’s mouth-watering menu of Middle Eastern goodies like hummus and pita, and stick around for a drink or three. On this night, 30% of alcohol beverages will go to V-Day, so grab a pitcher of homemade sangria or other delightful drink while you’re there!
The Big Five:
3/6 - Documentary Film: Until the Violence Stops
[color=violet]The film will feature English dialogue with Chinese subtitles.[/color]
$200 - 7pm, Building D, #56 Song Qin Street (near Taipei 101)
Until The Violence Stops is a powerful film that documents how The Vagina Monologues grew into an international grassroots movement called V-Day to stop violence against women and girls. It shows women from Harlem to Ukiah, California; from the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation to the Philippines and Kenya, uniting and courageously revealing their intimate and deeply painful experiences with abuse ranging from rape to female circumcision. More than just testimonies and performances, Until The Violence Stops is a film about empowerment and the importance of dialogue in the healing process. A celebration of women reclaiming their bodies and lives, this moving documentary leaves us with hope that change can happen.
3/7 and 3/8 - Reading: A Memory, a Monologue, a Rant, and a Prayer
[color=violet]These staged readings will be conducted in English, without subtitles.[/color]
$300 - 7pm, Building D, #56 Song Qin Street
This performance will feature selections from a groundbreaking collection of essays published by V-Day in 2007. The essays, written by world-renowned authors and playwrights like Alice Walker and Maya Angelou, were commissioned in2006 by V-Day for the first V-Day: UNTIL THE VIOLENCE STOPS festival in New York City. Beyond the time constraint of five minutes or less and the theme of women and violence, each piece was for the writer to realize. No constructs, restrictions, or rules. A fantasy of a world where there is no violence. A poem about the physics of a slap. A memory. These writings are inspired, funny, angry, heartfelt, tragic, and beautiful. Together they create a true and profound portrait of how violence against women affects every one of us.
3/14 and 3/15 - Play: The Vagina Monologues
[color=violet]This year’s performances will be conducted in Chinese only, with no subtitles.[/color]
$500 - 7:30pm, Taipei City Hall, 2F, #1 Shi Fu Road
Back for a fourth helping in Taipei, this year’s Vagina Monologues will include performances by singer Wan Fang (萬芳), actress Si-Hui Du (杜思慧), and professional dominatrix and activist Shi Ye (十夜).
