Vagina Monologues

I have seen the Vagina Monologues at CSUS in 2013 and 2014, since my friends and I decided to make an annual tradition of it. It is always done the day before Valentine’s Day, and some years there are additional performances as well.
In 2013, I thought the play was fantastic. Some of the actresses used cards, but this is supposedly done intentionally to remind the audience that the stories came from real women. I personally think this would be better achieved by, oh, I don’t know… telling us that the stories came from real women, and then memorizing your lines… but whatever.
Cost both years was $ 5 for CSUS current students, $ 7 for community college students, and $ 10 for general admission, with no alumni discount. My friends and I are all alumni and all paid the $ 10, which we were luckily able to afford even without the awesome jobs we thought we’d have by now.
Back to the play– I don’t know what happened between last year and this year, but there was a very noticeable decline in performance. The production seemed very, very thrown-​together at the last second, and even though I love the cause that it supports (proceeds go to My Sister’s House in Sacramento), it didn’t feel like it was even worth the $ 10. The audio was the worst ever, and if not for having seen the play before, I wouldn’t have known what was going on.
Like I said, in 2013, some of the actresses used cards, but in 2014, they all did, for every scene. I happened to find this particularly annoying because I cannot stand when people read to me – just a pet peeve– I seriously wanted to leave for most of the play, and it felt kind of awkward having to smile and laugh with my friends because I didn’t want to ruin it for everyone else.
Great, amazing cause, and great material, but I’m really hoping they do a better job next year, or I’ll have to start shelling out to see it elsewhere.