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New play tells stories of post-abortive women and men |
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By Julie Carroll
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Wednesday, 25 February 2009 |
Epiphany Studio Productions’ newest play, “The Vitae Monologues,” opens with a scene in a therapist’s office, where several people talk about seemingly unrelated problems they’re having in their lives. Soon, however, a common theme begins to emerge: Each has experienced the trauma of abortion.
Jeremy Stanbary and Sarah Preissner star in the play “The Vitae Monologues,” which premieres 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 27, at the University of St. Thomas’ OShaughnessy Educational Center in St. Paul. Photo courtesy of Epiphany Studio Productions
The two-person, one-act play, premiering Friday, Feb. 27, at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, is based on true stories of post-abortive women and men who suffered long-term psychological effects of abortion but eventually found healing and forgiveness through Christ.
The Feb. 27 performance begins at 7:30 p.m. at UST’s O’Shaughnessy
Educational Center. Other performances are set for 7:30 p.m. Saturday,
Feb. 28, and 1:30 p.m. Sunday, March 1.
Jeremy Stanbary, founder
and executive director of the Minneapolis-based Catholic production
company, said he conceived of the play in 2005 after hearing people
speak about their abortions during an annual event sponsored by the
pro-life organization Silent No More Minnesota at the State Capitol.
“Like most people there, I had tears running down my face,” Stanbary said.
“Oftentimes
we don’t realize that not only is abortion the taking of an innocent
human life in terms of the baby, but there are also widespread,
devastating effects that it can have in [the parents’] lives.”
Message of healing, hope
Stanbary
conducted interviews with several members of Silent No More, upon whose
lives he based “The Vitae Monologues” (“The Monologues of Life”).
However,
the characters in the play are unnamed “because we’re actually telling
the stories of millions of people,” said actor Sarah Preissner.
“Even
generally pro-life people need to hear these stories and grapple with
the priority of this issue because we tend to sit on the sidelines in
terms of abortion and become discouraged,” Stanbary said. “We’re trying
to explore post-abortion grief, but also offer a message of healing and
hope for our culture and for those that continue to suffer in silence.”
Tickets are $12 for adults and $8 for students. A 25 percent discount is available for groups of 10 or more.
A portion of the proceeds from the play will go to Silent No More.
This play may not be suitable for children under 12 years of age, according to Epiphany Studio Productions.
To purchase tickets, call Sarah Preissner at (920) 850-5939 or e-mail her at
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
. For more information about Epiphany Studio Productions or to book a performance, visit www.epiphanystudio.com.
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