Welcome to the deep dive the place where we distill
stacks of sources and dense research into pure
essential knowledge We're here to give you the
shortcut to being the most informed person in
the room with a surprising facts and deep analysis
that sticks Today we're undertaking a pretty
monumental deep dive We're looking into someone
whose personal journey just completely became
a blueprint for global activism We are exploring
the life and I guess the transformative work
of V the American can playwright, author, performer,
feminist, and activist. And when you look at
the source material, the sheer weight of her
influence is just undeniable. Totally. We found
this quote from The New York Times back in 2006
describing her most famous work. They called
it probably the most important piece of political
theater of the last decade. Which is huge praise,
I mean, for a stage production. Exactly. So our
mission today is really to understand why. How
did that happen? Right. We want to trace that
line from V's personal story, overcoming trauma.
a trauma that's so deeply woven into her identity,
all the way to establishing these massive global
movements. We want to connect the dots, basically.
The art, the healing, and the, well, the very
real measurable impact. We're talking multimillion
dollar philanthropic action here. Let's start
with maybe the most powerful symbol of that transformation,
the name itself. V. Yeah, our sources really
highlight this. V deciding in 2019 to officially
adopt the mononym V. She shed her former surname
Ensler. And this wasn't just like an artistic
whim, right? It wasn't some rebranding exercise.
Not at all. It was deeply consequential. Personal,
public. A real reckoning. Exactly. And the timing
is key. Follow the publication of her book, The
Apology. The book is crucial for understanding
this whole journey. Right, because in The Apology,
she detailed the sexual and physical abuse she
suffered from her late father. And the name change
was this explicit permanent severing. Cutting
times with his name his legacy was like a final
definitive act of healing you could say Wow So
taking this incredibly private pain and immediately
channeling it into her public ongoing Activist
identity. It's a really striking example that
process. Okay, so if that personal story is the
engine let's unpack that foundation section one
trauma Transformation and early career. Okay,
so V was born Eve Ensler 1953, New York City
Grew up in Scarsville. Second of three kids,
right? That's right. And it was a complex household
Jewish father, Christian mother. She grew up
in a predominantly Jewish community. Interestingly,
today she identifies as a Nibiren Buddhist, which
really informs her philosophy, especially around
suffering. And the source is they don't shy away
from her childhood trauma. She's spoken very
openly about being sexually and physically abused
by her father. Yeah, between the ages of five
and 10. And that fundamentally shaped her youth.
How did she describe herself back then? Well,
she said she was very sad, very angry, very defiant,
and felt like, you know, the girl who didn't
fit anywhere. That feeling of being an outsider
defined by this hidden injustice. You see that
often in activists, don't you? Absolutely. It's
a recurring theme. She took that defiance, though,
and channeled it academically. Attended Middlebury
College, graduated in 75. Where she apparently
earned a reputation pretty quickly. Oh, yeah.
As a militant feminist. That's how she was known.
But getting through college didn't automatically
mean peace, right? The sources show things were
still pretty turbulent afterwards. Definitely
not. Post -graduation, she described, well, a
really rough period. A string of abusive relationships
and also dependency on drugs and alcohol. It's
a stark reminder, isn't it, that trauma doesn't
just stop. It echoes, especially in relationships,
until it's really confronted. It absolutely reverberates.
It was a critical struggle. But then came a turning
point, it seems, in 1978. Her marriage. Yeah,
she married Richard Dylan McDermott. He was a
bartender at the time, and apparently he helped
convince her to enter rehab. So maybe some stability
there. It sounds like it provided that initial
space for recovery. But perhaps the most profound
relationship during that time wasn't with her
husband. You mean with his son. Exactly. Mark
Anthony McDermott, he was 16, from Richard's
previous marriage. And this relationship was
really significant for her. It's a beautiful
and vital detail in the sources, yeah. V has
said publicly that this relationship taught her
how to be a loving human being. Wow. Given her
own background, forging that kind of healthy
loving bond. That must have been incredibly healing,
foundational. Totally foundational. And there's
this really moving anecdote in the sources, too.
After V suffered a miscarriage, Mark actually
adopted the baby's planned name, Dylan, as his
own middle name. Oh, wow. That really solidifies
that connection, doesn't it? An unexpected family
bond. It really does. But even with that emotional
foundation, the sources suggest V needed something
else. Autonomy. Right. To become the artist and
activist, we know. So the marriage ended. It
did in 1988. V cited a need for independence,
for freedom, really, to pursue her own path.
Which was becoming clearer by then. And that
path was heavily influenced by her spiritual
life, which was deepening, identifying as a Nichiren
Buddhist that provides the lens, you know, for
how she views suffering. And the core practice
there is chanting, right? Yeah, chanting Namamutra
and so on. The idea is to manifest inner wisdom.
compassion, essentially transforming suffering,
negative karma into fuel for growth. They often
call it changing poison into medicine. Changing
poison into medicine, that phrase. That feels
like the key thematic link, doesn't it? I think
it absolutely is. It explains why she treats
trauma not just as the debilitating tragedy,
but almost as a resource. Exactly. It's the intellectual
scaffolding for her work. And you see it play
out later, very clearly, when she confronts physical
illness. Her cancer diagnosis in 2009. Right.
She received treatment for uterine cancer, and
that whole experience became the subject of her
memoir, In the Body of the World. She was declared
cancer -free in 2012, which is wonderful news.
of course. Great news. But it's how she framed
the illness that's so striking. The sources quote
her saying she used sickness as a tool for transformation.
Again, that philosophy. Taking something inherently
destructive, cancer, childhood abuse, and insisting
on its utility. It's this radical rejection of
victimhood. It's a commitment to using the energy
of the struggle itself. That spiritual and philosophical
grounding. It feels essential for understanding
how her art turns so quickly into this functioning
global activist machine. Indispensable. Yeah.
It really sets the stage perfectly for the work
that just changed everything, for her and for
millions of others. Which brings us perfectly
to section two, the vagina monologues and the
V -Day movement. Okay, so... V writes the vagina
monologues in 1996. And it's hard maybe for listeners
today to fully grasp how radical that title,
that content was back then. Oh, completely. The
word vagina just wasn't said openly. Certainly
not in a commercial theater setting. It was like
a grenade, linguistically and theatrically. Absolutely.
And the power of it was in its simplicity, its
vulnerability. It started so humbly. Like literally
in a basement. Literally. The basement of the
Cornelia Street Cafe in Greenwich Village. Yeah.
Then off Broadway, then off Broadway runs. It
was a true grassroots thing, building steam purely
on word of mouth on the emotional punch of the
story. And once it got out of that basement.
It just exploded. It quickly got serious critical
acclaim. Won the Obie Award for best new play
in 96, then a Guggenheim Fellowship for playwriting
in 99. But the scale is what really sets it apart
from other hit plays, isn't it? Oh, completely.
The global reach is astonishing. translated into
48 languages, performed in over 140 countries.
Think about that. These intimate, vulnerable
stories V collected. They were resonating across
incredibly different cultures, connecting women
in a way maybe traditional politics couldn't.
That's exactly it. And the high -profile performances
were key to amplifying that. Right. The list
of celebrities who performed in it is incredible.
Jane Fonda, Oprah Winfrey, Glenn Close. Edina
Menzel, Susan Sarandon, Whoopi Goldberg, Cyndi
Lauper. The list goes on. Their star power basically
turned conversation about anatomy, about trauma,
into this mainstream humanitarian call to action.
And that's the crucial link, right? The play
wasn't just about violence. It was designed to
be the engine for change. Precisely. The sources
confirm it. The success of the play directly
inspired her to found V -Day in 1998. So it wasn't
just an artistic foundation supporting a cause.
It became the cause. It became this massive global
activist movement dedicated to stopping violence
against women, girls, gender expansive people,
and importantly, also the earth. The art gave
them the language, maybe, and the organization
gave them the structure. Well put. And the name,
V -Day, it's just brilliant branding, isn't it?
Semantically clever. How so? Well, the organization
intentionally plays on the triple meaning of
V, victory. Valentine and vagina. Ah, okay. So
linking victory over violence. For Valentine,
sort of universal love and connection. And vagina,
reclaiming that core female identity. Exactly.
It broadened the mission beyond just trauma.
It brought an agency celebration. OK, let's talk
about the scale of this mechanism. How effective
was this model, using annual benefit performances
of the monologues to actually fund the activism?
The measurable impact is just staggering. By
2010, the movement had sparked over 15 ,400 V
-Day events in more than 1 ,500 locations around
the world, and financially. By 2014, the movement
had raised over $100 million. $100 million? That's...
That's incredible. Generated by essentially a
network of grassroots theater productions. All
feeding this global humanitarian work. It's proof
really that emotional vulnerability, when channeled
through a clear artistic vision, can be an immensely
powerful fundraising tool. A tool for real social
change. So where did that hundred million dollars
go? What specific things did it achieve? The
sources point to very specific targeted results.
V -Day funded over 12 ,000 community -based anti
-violence programs and safe houses. And crucially,
focusing on high risk areas. Exactly. We're talking
about places like the Democratic Republic of
Congo, DRC, Haiti, Kenya, Iraq. These safe houses
aren't just general shelters. They specifically
offer sanctuary from endemic violence, things
like domestic abuse, female genital mutilation,
FGM, and so -called honor killings. And just
for our listeners, FGM. female genital mutilation
involves partially or totally removing external
female genitalia or other injury for non -medical
reasons. It's vital context for the kind of extreme
violence V -Day is confronting. Absolutely critical
context. The scope is just remarkable when you
step back. From tackling linguistic taboos in
a New York basement. To building physical shelters,
protecting women from ritualized violence in
conflict zones like Iraq and the DRC. That whole
trajectory. That's why V received the highest
honors in the theater world. Not just for the
play itself, but for the global structure it
launched. Which culminated in the Tony Award
recognition in 2011. Yes, the Isabelle Stevenson
Award. That's a special Tony given for substantial
humanitarian work within the theater community.
And it's specifically cited the creation of the
V -Day movement. Exactly. It really underlines
the idea that maybe her greatest contribution
wasn't just the words on the page, but the actual
physical humanitarian machine she built from
those words. And that machine kept working, kept
evolving, long after the vagina monologues became
a global phenomenon. Definitely. Which takes
us nicely into section three, expanding the narrative,
subsequent theatrical and literary works. Right.
Once the monologues had made such a huge impact,
she had to decide, OK, what comes next? What's
the next story to tell? And she spent the next
couple of decades really broadening her focus,
moving from that specific political act of reclaiming
the vagina to exploring violence, body image,
identity. global insecurity in wider ways. Like
with her play, The Good Body. Exactly. In 2005,
2006, she toured that play to 20 North American
cities. What was the main shift in focus there?
It moved from the hidden trauma, the abuse, the
shame tied to the vagina to the visible body.
The play explored that pervasive global pressure
women feel to physically change themselves. Through
surgery, diets, whatever. Right. All to gain
societal acceptance. It was looking at this idea
of the colonization of the self, you know, how
external pressures, media, cultural standards
dictate our worth based on how we look. So if
the monologues were about reclaiming what society
tells you to hide. The good body was about resisting
what society tells you to change. Makes sense.
Then in 2006, she tackled something different
again with the treatment. Yeah, that play looked
at geopolitical trauma, the moral, the psychological
fallout from being involved in military conflicts.
It was a significant expansion. moving beyond
explicitly gendered violence to the wider societal
damage caused by war. And connecting back to
her personal life again, too. It does. The treatment
actually starred her adopted son, Dylan McDermott.
Wow. So bringing that foundational family relationship
right into a discussion about societal trauma,
that constant weaving of the personal and the
political, it's just core to V's whole approach.
We touched on her cancer journey earlier. That
became the heart of... in the body of the world.
First a memoir in 2013, then a solo play in 2018.
Right, directed by the amazing Diane Paulus.
How did she approach translating that cancer
experience for the stage or even the page? Well,
it wasn't just a medical diary, you know, it
was a much deeper look at the body as this political
and emotional landscape. Booklist called the
memoir a ravishing book of revelation and healing
lashing truths and deep emotion courage and perseverance
That's quite the description. It really is. Yeah
V used her illness to explore not just the physical
pain but also the flaws in institutional health
care and the sort of Radical act of finding agency
within your own body when it feels like it's
under attack and it was in that work She articulated
that really powerful almost counterintuitive
philosophy the only salvation is kindness. Yeah.
Considering the immense pain, physical, psychological,
she survived, that statement is profound. It
feels like the distillation of her Buddhist practice
into this simple, actionable, political idea.
I think so. And this brings us back full circle
almost to the apology. the 2019 book that came
right before the name change. The apology is
such a fascinating concept, imaginative nonfiction,
where she writes the apology she never received
from her abusive father. The literary device
there is just so powerful. V realized, didn't
she, that the apology she needed, one that might
bring closure, it was never going to come in
real life. So she created it herself. Exactly.
By imagining it, by writing those words, she
could process the trauma, maybe release some
of that bitterness, really take control of the
narrative of her own abuse. It's an incredible
act of self -empowerment, creating the closure
that reality denied her. And the sources are
clear. Finishing that process, writing and publishing
The Apology, that's what gave her the final sort
of emotional and intellectual green light to
shed her father's name. And become V. The literary
act was the final therapeutic step towards total
independence. It really cements that idea for
V. Personal healing is a public act. It's intertwined.
Absolutely. And beyond these really heavy, transformative
works, she also wrote successfully for a younger
audience. I Am an Emotional Creature in 2010.
That book did really well. New York Times bestseller
list. Huge success. It shows her dedication wasn't
just about healing past trauma, but also inspiring
agency in the next generation. Trying to equip
girls with the language and framework to value
their feelings. Take charge. Exactly. And her
nonfiction for adults also shows this broad intellectual
curiosity. 2006, she published Insecure at Last,
losing it in our security -obsessed world. That
title is intriguing. Insecure at last. What's
the argument? It basically explores modern life's
obsession with security, physical, financial,
emotional. V argues that the extreme lengths
we go to feel safe Often end up trapping us and
that real freedom might come from letting go
of that illusion of total protection That's the
core idea. It's almost an activist book about
mental liberation in a way She also contributed
significantly to anthologies like co -editing
a memory a monologue a rant and a prayer in 2006
focused specifically on violence against women
Okay, now for those two sort of amazing hidden
credits that show just how far her influence
reached even outside activist circles. First,
the uncredited contributions to Wicked. Isn't
that incredible? Wicked, fourth longest running
show in Broadway history. A massive commercial
juggernaut. And V's feminist insights were secretly
woven into its fabric. Gives you a whole new
perspective on that musical, doesn't it? It really
does. And second, consulting on Mad Max. Fury
Road. I know. The 2015 action blockbuster. Talk
about unexpected reach. It defines it. An activist
whose work started in a basement shaped a $100
million global movement. Also helped shape the
feminist perspective in one of the most celebrated
action films of the century. It really speaks
to her ability to inject that perspective anywhere,
no matter how commercial the project. Truly remarkable
versatility. Okay, let's take that influence
and ground it back in concrete action. Section
four, deep dive into global and local activism
initiatives. And we have to start with the biggest
physical manifestation of V -Day's work. The
city of joy. Yes, the city of joy. It's truly
this beacon of hope that emerged from, well,
the most horrific circumstances imaginable. It
opened in 2011 in Bukavu, Democratic Republic
of Congo, the DRC. Right. And it's crucial to
remember the context. The UN has described the
DRC as the rape capital of the world. Systemic
gender violence used deliberately as a weapon
of war. It's hard to even comprehend the scale.
So given that backdrop of devastation, what exactly
is the city of joy? How does it work? It's a
dedicated residential community specifically
for women who have survived gender violence.
But it's more than just a shelter. The program
provides intensive training and healing for up
to 180 Congolese women each year. In a structured
program. Yeah, a holistic six month curriculum.
It's really a transformational school, not just
a safe house. What are the key parts of that
curriculum? It's really multifaceted. There's
trauma informed group therapy. obviously crucial
for dealing with the psychological wounds. There's
self -defense training, rebuilding that sense
of physical autonomy, comprehensive sexuality
education, covering vital issues like HIV AIDS,
family planning, expressive arts or big two,
storytelling, theater, finding voice again, and
critically robust economic empowerment training.
Let's focus on that economic empowerment piece.
Why is that so vital in this model? Well, in
places grappling with endemic conflict and poverty,
Physical safety alone isn't enough, right? You
need economic independence. To break the cycle.
Exactly. So the training includes practical skills,
managing microfinance, vocational arts. The goal
is that when these women return to their communities,
they have the means to support themselves and
their families. It helps break that cycle of
dependency that can lead right back to vulnerability.
And what makes the City of Joy model different,
maybe, from more traditional Western -led aid
efforts in the region? This is key. the self
-sufficiency aspect. The sources really emphasize
that Congolese women themselves run, operate,
and direct the City of Joy. It's not run by outsiders.
No, not by American or European expats. This
focus on local leadership is vital. It ensures
cultural relevance, long -term sustainability.
It transforms it from just a charitable intervention
into genuine empowerment and community building.
And its impact was significant enough to be featured
in a Netflix documentary. Yeah, also called City
of Joy. really brought its story to a global
audience. So after establishing this major institution,
V &V Day launched another huge global campaign
in 2012, One Billion Rising. Right. This was
a brilliant way to mobilize global public opinion
on a massive scale. What was the core idea behind
One Billion Rising? It was created as this global
protest campaign demanding an end to violence,
promoting justice, gender equality. The name
itself comes from that stark U .N. statistic.
One in three women globally will experience sexual
or physical violence. Which translates to roughly
one billion women. Exactly, one billion women
affected, hence one billion rising. And the chosen
form of protest was dance. Yes. Which might sound
unusual, but it was very intentional. The campaign
launched on V -Day's 15th anniversary, February
14, 2013. It involved these huge coordinated
dance actions happening all over the world simultaneously.
Why dance? It used collective celebratory movement
as a form of joyful, visible protest, taking
a stand against the shame and isolation that
often surrounds trauma. It was about turning
silent suffering into loud, collective, embodied
defiance. Beyond these huge global initiatives,
V has also consistently gotten involved in very
specific often politically charged advocacy work
around the world using her platform. Yeah, you
see her dedication to places that maybe don't
always get the media spotlight. She's been a
long time committed supporter of Rawah, the revolutionary
association of the women of Afghanistan. And
not just from afar, right? No. Incredibly, she
actually traveled to Afghanistan while the Taliban
were in power, which was a massive personal risk.
And she organized programs there, including an
Afghani Women's Summit for Democracy. That's
serious commitment. And her advocacy was also
focused closer to home in Mexico. Right. In 2004,
she was protesting down there alongside some
major American names, Sally Field, Jane Fonda,
Christine Lottie. What was their goal? They were
targeting the Mexican government, trying to pressure
them to properly reinvestigate the brutal and
largely unsolved murders of hundreds of women
in Ciudad Juarez. That area had become notorious
for femicide. Exactly. Infamous. And V understood
that bringing celebrity focus could force official
attention onto these long -ignored human rights
crises. And domestically, here in the U .S.,
she's had this incredible long -term commitment
within the criminal justice system since 1998,
leading a writing group at Bedford Hills Correctional
Facility for Women. Yeah, that sustained dedication
to incarcerated women is powerful. It's using
her core skill teaching women how to tell their
own stories, which V fundamentally believes is
the first step towards reclaiming autonomy. And
that group was featured in a documentary. It
was. what I want my words to do to you. It really
highlighted the emotional work, the expressive
power being cultivated among the participants,
including some high -profile inmates like Judy
Clark and Kathy Booton. Her advocacy also stretched
into broader policy arenas, showing her influence
across different sectors. Yeah, like in 2016,
she co -signed a letter to Ban Ki -moon, who
was the UN Secretary General then. What was the
letter about? Calling for a more humane global
drug policy. Interesting. Who else signed on?
It shows her ability to collaborate outside typical
activist circles. She signed alongside people
like Warren Buffett and John Legend, using her
influence to push for systemic reform around
drug criminalization, recognizing how that fuels
violence and mass incarceration globally. And
finally, the sources also document her clear
stance in U .S. politics, particularly her criticism
of Donald Trump in The Guardian in 2017. Oh,
yeah, she didn't mince words there, called him
a self -confessed sexual assaulter and our predator
in chief. directly linking her global work against
gender violence to her commentary on American
leadership. Absolutely. And she later endorsed
Senator Bernie Sanders for president in 2020.
It shows this comprehensive view of activism
spanning everything from grassroots organizing
in prisons to major political endorsements. Okay,
wow. This deep dive has really mapped out an
incredible journey for Vee. We've seen her take
profound personal trauma, filter it through this
rigorous spiritual practice, transform it into
a radical, world -changing piece of theater,
the Vagina Monologues. And then, almost immediately,
that art became the engine financially, spiritually
for Vee Day. This global activist powerhouse.
raising over $100 million, establishing tangible
institutions like the City of Joy and the DRC.
The synthesis really seems to be that V's art
was never just commentary, right? It was always
the blueprint for the action. Exactly. Her most
personal literary works, especially the Apology,
the one detailing the abuse leading to her name
change, they demonstrate how intensely personal
stories can directly fuel movements with massive,
measurable global impact. She didn't just survive
her past, she harnessed its energy. Transform
that pain into the actual capability, financial
and philosophical, to build better futures for
thousands worldwide. It's an incredible testament
to transformation, to narrative control. It really
is. As we wrap up, maybe we should circle back
to that core vision V articulated in the body
of the world. That simple phrase, the only salvation
is kindness. Right. Think about that again in
the context of the actual work V -Day does. They're
on the front lines dealing with war zone rape,
FGM, deeply entrenched institutional violence.
Conflicts fueled by hate, systemic misogyny,
complex geopolitics. So the provocative thought
for you, the listener, is this. Given the huge
complex structural nature of the violence V and
V -Day are fighting, How does a singular belief
in kindness, a belief seemingly rooted in personal
healing, how does that successfully fuel and
sustain such immense structural change? How does
it build functioning independent institutions
across wildly different cultures? It really makes
you contemplate the measurable, almost quantifiable
power of individual transformation, that deep
personal healing when it's skillfully, strategically,
and passionately channeled into collective structural
global action, that fusion. Yeah. personal healing
driving massive logistical achievement. Maybe
that's the ultimate lesson from B's remarkable
career.