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SUCCESS IN LONDON: Three V-Day Events Raise Awareness & Funds for City of Joy & V-Girls


12/16/2011

From November 22 - 24, V-Day held three events in London, bringing international attention to both V-Day's work in Congo, and V-Day's newest initiative, V-Girls. The hugely successful events were organized by long-time V-Day activist Monique Wilson and Rossana Abueva:

The Congo Monologues

On November 22nd, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer hosted "The Congo Monologues" - an evening where lawyers and legal experts based in the UK gathered to hear Tony-Award winning playwright and V-Day founder Eve Ensler, V-Day Congo and City of Joy Director Christine Schuler Deschryver, and Dr. Denis Mukwege, founder of the Panzi Hospital in the Congo, speak about the situation of women in the DRC and their work. The event was hosted to explore ways in which to provide legal assistance and justice to women of the Congo. A big thank you to Clarrisa O'callaghan for making this event a huge success!

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer is a leader among international law firms, providing business law advice throughout Europe, the Middle East, Asia and the USA. They have over 2,500 lawyers in 27 key business centers around world.

The event was hosted by Lucy Reed, a senior partner at Freshfields and co-head of their global international arbitration group. The evening also featured performances of Eve Ensler's two monologues on the Congo: "Baptized", performed by acclaimed British actress Linda Marlowe, and "Ten Ways to Survive Sexual Slavery in the Congo" - performed by Eno Williams-Uffort, one of the original cast members of the Paris workshop production of Eve's new play - "Emotional Creature".

5x15 Fundraising Event for The City of Joy

On November 23rd, 5x15 hosted a fundraising evening for The City of Joy at the Tabernacle, Notting Hill - a 19th century Grade II listed former evangelical church. The evening featured Eve Ensler and Christine Schuler Deschryver as speakers. Joining them was Helena Kennedy, one of theUK's great defenders of civil liberties and leading QC's. Sandi Toksvig - comedian, radio and television presenter - was the evening's brilliant auctioneer. A HUGE v-thank you to Rosie Boycott who produced and hosted this event which raised over 17,000 pounds for the City of Joy.

5x15 is the brainchild of journalist Rosie Boycott, her daughter and book editor at The Lady Daisy Leitch and literary festival promoter Eleanor O'Keeffe. Running since January 2010, 5x15 is a series of evenings that feature dynamic thinkers from a wide spectrum of spheres. The concept of these evenings is to give five prominent people the opportunity to talk about their biggest achievement or passion.

V-Girl Workshop led by Eve Ensler at the East 15 Acting School

On November 24th, Eve Ensler led a V-Girl workshop at the East 15 Acting School with over 80 girls from all over the UK and 22 countries around the world. The students were 1st year BA students in acting and contemporary theatre, and MA postgraduate acting students.

East 15 Acting School in East London has been training actors, directors, producers, and theatre technicians for over 50 years. The school grew from the work of Joan Littlewood's famed Theatre Workshop and is one of the few drama schools to have come from such a background. Theatre workshop broke new ground, commissioning new plays from socially committed writers, and creating an ensemble capable of inventing new work - an ethos the drama school adopts to this day.

The workshop was a creative life force of ideas where the girls, inspired by Eve, came up with creative, empowered and inventive ways to fully come into their power and voices and take V-Girls to their friends around the world.