Vag Magazine

Last updated
Vag Magazine
Genre Comedy, web series
Created by Leila Cohan-Miccio
Caitlin Tegart
Written byLeila Cohan-Miccio
Caitlin Tegart
Starring Kate McKinnon
Jocelyn Guest
Nicole Drespel
Sarah Claspell
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
Production
Executive producersLeila Cohan-Miccio
Caitlin Tegart

Vag Magazine, which was created in 2010 by Leila Cohan-Miccio and Caitlin Tegart, is an American feminist themed comedy web series starring Kate McKinnon, Jocelyn Guest, Nicole Drespel, Sarah Claspell, Veronica Osorio, and Leslie Meisel. The web series in its entirety can be found on YouTube and Vimeo. [1] Filmed at Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre, [2] Vag Magazine was directed by Zach Neumeyer and produced by Nicole Shabtai.

Contents

The six-episode mini-series was created to take a comedic, satirical approach to feminism. Writer and creator, Caitlin Tegart, said in an interview about Vag Magazine, "ultimately, people like to be parodied and I hope that it’s obvious from our parodies that we are feminists...in a way, we are saying that this is important enough to be parodied." [3] [4]

Synopsis

With the proceeds of their Etsy shop, three “hipster third-wave feminists”, Bethany, Sylvie, and Fennel buyout fashion magazine Gemma, and come together to create Vag Magazine. The lone standing Gemma holdover, Meghan, is skeptical about the re-branding. [5] In the midst of creating Vag Magazine, co-creators Bethany, Sylvie, and Fennel get their vision for “Vag” entangled, ultimately putting the fate of the magazine at stake. Meghan is offered a position at competing magazine, “Cunt Mag”, and is met with choosing between a new position or sticking it out with the dysfunctional, yet endearing friends she’s made along the way at Vag Magazine. [6]

Cast

Production

Creators of Vag Magazine, Leila Cohan-Miccio and Caitlin Tegart, have mentioned in interviews that a goal of theirs with the web-series was to appeal concepts of feminism to a larger demographic. [4] By using cringe and satire, the series interrupts the fantasies of the male gaze and makes room for the complexity, and seemingly shameful realities, of the female experience. [7] Yet, humor has not always been a friend of the feminist movement - the 1960s and 70s were tainted with ridicule against women. Writer and comedian, Kate Clinton, notes: "Men have used humor against women so long--we know implicitly whose butt is the butt of their jokes--that we do not trust humor." [7] To perform stand-up comedy—to be aggressively funny—is to violate the norms of femininity. [8] [9] [10]

Vag Magazine was both created and filmed at Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre (UCB Theatre), an improvisational theater company which was founded by comedians Amy Poehler, Matt Walsh, Ian Roberts, and Matt Besser. Other notable comedians who emerged from UCB include Donald Glover, Ed Helms, Ellie Kemper, Aubrey Plaza, and Nick Kroll.

Critical Response

Viewers of Vag Magazine have varied perspectives on the concept of feminism, and furthermore third-wave feminism. Therefore, the web-series was met with mixed reviews. Natasha Leupke, guest writer for The Society Pages, reflects: "Third-wave feminism is sometimes viewed with disdain because it can seem empty: if any choice a woman makes can be construed as feminist, then perhaps no act can be truly called feminist." [11] The web-series generated conversation on different perceptions of feminism. Leupke went on to mention that "the series humorously highlights the bind which modern feminists often find themselves in: how to be inclusive without embracing everything, [and] how to be forthright of inequality [without] bullying." [11]

Alice Wetterlund of Slate Magazine offered that the series made her realize why public-service comedy grosses her out. That the series itself is "debatably" comedic, and in fact not a "call to arms for some sequestered faction of feminism." [12]

In typical third-wave style, Vag Magazine is an example of when the woman has the capacity to play along with the rules of gender display and simultaneously work aggressively for social justice. And yet, this is often critiqued and approached with trepidation. Many third-wave narratives tell of women doing feminism without knowing or labeling it as such. [13] While the characters in Vag Magazine label their feminism in the name of satire, they equally exhibit how women can perform the dichotomy of gender display while still working towards social justice.

Related Research Articles

The Upright Citizens Brigade (UCB) is an improvisational and sketch comedy group that emerged from Chicago's ImprovOlympic in 1990. The original incarnation of the group consisted of Amy Poehler, Matt Walsh, Matt Besser, Ian Roberts, Adam McKay, Rick Roman, Horatio Sanz and Drew Franklin. Other early members included Neil Flynn, Armando Diaz, Ali Farahnakian and Rich Fulcher.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matt Besser</span> American actor and comedian

Matthew Gregory Besser is an American actor, comedian, director, producer, writer, and one of the four founding members of the Upright Citizens Brigade sketch comedy troupe, who had their own show on Comedy Central from 1998 to 2000. He hosts the improvisation-based podcast Improv4humans on the Earwolf podcasting network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre</span> Improvisational comedy venue

The Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre is an American improvisational theatre company and training center founded by the Upright Citizens Brigade troupe members Matt Besser, Amy Poehler, Ian Roberts and Matt Walsh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rob Huebel</span> American actor, comedian and writer

Robert Anderson Huebel is an American actor, comedian and writer best known for his sketch comedy work on the MTV series Human Giant and for his role of Dr. Owen Maestro on the Adult Swim series Childrens Hospital. He also appeared as Russell on the FX/FXX series The League and as Len Novak on the Amazon Prime Video series Transparent. In December 2022, Entertainment Weekly called Huebel "the premier d-bag character actor of his generation".

Danielle Caroline Schneider is an American actress, writer, and improvisational comedian from the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre. She co-created and starred in the Hulu reality TV parody series The Hotwives and currently co-hosts the podcast Bitch Sesh.

Dannah Phirman (née Feinglass) is an American actress, comedian, and writer best known for co-starring as Narge Hemingway in the Adult Swim series Newsreaders. She is also the co-creator and co-star of the Hulu reality TV parody series The Hotwives. She was a member of the long-running sketch comedy troupe Respecto Montalban, one of the original improv groups at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">June Diane Raphael</span> American actress, comedienne, and screenwriter (born 1980)

June Diane Raphael is an American actress, comedian, and screenwriter. She has starred in TV comedy programs Burning Love, Adult Swim's NTSF:SD:SUV::, and Grace and Frankie. Notable film work includes supporting roles in Year One and Unfinished Business, as well as her 2013 Sundance film Ass Backwards, which she co-wrote and starred in with her creative partner Casey Wilson. She currently co-hosts both How Did This Get Made? alongside Jason Mantzoukas and her husband Paul Scheer, and The Deep Dive with Jessica St. Clair.

Rebecca Addelman is a Canadian comedian, writer, director and actress living in Los Angeles, California. She was a contributing staff writer on Fox's sitcom New Girl and is the creator of Guilty Party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zach Woods</span> American actor and comedian

Zach Woods is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his roles as a series regular for three seasons as Gabe Lewis on the NBC sitcom The Office, as Jared Dunn on the HBO comedy series Silicon Valley, as Zach Harper on the USA Network sitcom Playing House, and as Matt Spencer on the HBO comedy show Avenue 5. He also recurred on the HBO series Veep as Ed Webster, and starred as Silicon Valley billionaire Edgar D. Minnows in the Apple TV+ murder mystery series The Afterparty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adam Pally</span> American comedian and actor

Adam Saul Pally is an American comedian and actor. He is best known for starring as Max Blum in the ABC comedy series Happy Endings and as Dr. Peter Prentice in The Mindy Project. He also starred in the FOX comedy Making History and was the executive producer of The President Show.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kulap Vilaysack</span> American actress

Kulap Tukta Vilaysack is an American actress, comedian, writer, director, and showrunner. She co-hosts the Add To Cart podcast with SuChin Pak on Lemonada Media. She was the co-host of the Who Charted? podcast on the Earwolf network from 2010 until 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alice Wetterlund</span> American comedian

Alice Wetterlund is an American stand-up comedian, actress, and podcast host. She played Carla Walton on the HBO sitcom Silicon Valley, and currently plays D'Arcy Bloom on the SyFy TV series Resident Alien.

<i>Reductress</i> American feminist satire website

Reductress is an American satire website that parodies the style, tone, and perspective of media targeted towards women, especially women's magazines. Founded in 2013 by comedians Beth Newell and Sarah Pappalardo, the site has received praise from reviewers for its satirical pieces including advice columns, news stories, and listicles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Drew Tarver</span> American actor

Andrew Tarver is an American actor and comedian from the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater in Los Angeles. He is known for starring in the Seeso show Bajillion Dollar Propertie$ and for his appearances on comedy podcasts, including Comedy Bang! Bang! and Big Grande's The Teachers Lounge. He starred as Cary Dubek on the comedy series The Other Two.

Lucia Aniello is an Italian-born American director, writer, and producer best known for her work on Hacks, for which she won multiple Emmy Awards, and Broad City. She has directed and written episodes of both shows, as well as the miniseries Time Traveling Bong and the 2017 film Rough Night.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">D'Arcy Carden</span> American actress and comedian (born 1980)

D'Arcy Beth Carden is an American actress and comedian. She is best known for her portraying Janet in the NBC sitcom The Good Place (2016–2020), for which she earned a nomination for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series, and Greta Gill in the Prime series A League of Their Own (2022). She also played Gemma in Broad City (2014–2019) and Natalie Greer in the HBO dark comedy series Barry (2018–2023).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anthony Atamanuik</span> American writer, actor, and comedian

Anthony Atamanuik is an American writer, actor, and comedian. He impersonated former U.S. President Donald Trump during the campaign and his presidency, first on the Trump vs. Bernie debate tour, and then on The President Show.

Siobhan Thompson is a British-American sketch comedian and comedy writer. She is known for her work on the CollegeHumor Originals web series and has appeared in other programs such as Adam Ruins Everything and Broad City. She was also a staff writer for Adult Swim's Rick and Morty.

Jessica McKenna is an American actress, comedian and singer. McKenna trained with The Groundlings and at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre, where she regularly performs. McKenna was one of the stars of Fox's Party Over Here, alongside Nicole Byer and Alison Rich, and hosted the podcast Off Book: The Improvised Musical until 2023.

Sue Galloway is an American actress, comedian, and screenwriter. An Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre alumna and teacher, she is best known for playing Sue Laroche-Van der Hout on the NBC sitcom 30 Rock. Since 2002, Galloway has been an active member of the longtime Upright Citizens Brigade (UCB) troupe.

References

  1. ↑ "Vag Magazine". Vimeo. Retrieved 2023-12-04.
  2. ↑ Angelo, Megan (2012-02-12). "The Roses! The Romance! The Roasts! (Published 2012)". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2020-10-08.
  3. ↑ "The Upright Citizens Brigade", The Comedy Improv Handbook, Routledge, pp. 35–36, 2015-10-14, doi:10.4324/9781315678108-23, ISBN   978-1-315-67810-8 , retrieved 2023-11-29
  4. 1 2 "A Web Comedy with A Feminist Prod, 'Vag Magazine' Premieres at Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre". Observer. 2010-10-07. Retrieved 2023-11-29.
  5. ↑ Vag Magazine Episode 1: "Fumbling Toward Ecstasy" , retrieved 2023-11-29
  6. ↑ Vag Magazine Episode 6: "Revelling/Reckoning" , retrieved 2023-11-29
  7. 1 2 Marso, Lori (2018-08-06). "Feminist Cringe Comedy: Dear Dick, The Joke Is on You". Politics & Gender. 15 (1): 107–129. doi:10.1017/s1743923x18000387. ISSN   1743-923X. S2CID   149554696.
  8. ↑ Barreca, Regina (2022), "Introduction", Last Laughs, London: Routledge, pp. 3–22, doi:10.4324/9781003273394-1, ISBN   978-1-003-27339-4, S2CID   246516027 , retrieved 2023-12-04
  9. ↑ Willett, Cynthia; Willett, Julie; Sherman, Yael D. (2012). "The Seriously Erotic Politics of Feminist Laughter". Social Research: An International Quarterly. 79 (1): 217–246. doi:10.1353/sor.2012.0047. ISSN   1944-768X. S2CID   142779799.
  10. ↑ ">Breaking Stacks and Cutting Layers: The Self-Conscious Comedy of Comedy", The Comic Event : Comedic Performance from the 1950s to the Present, Bloomsbury Academic, 2017, doi:10.5040/9781501335754.0011, ISBN   978-1-5013-3572-3 , retrieved 2023-12-04
  11. 1 2 Pages, The Society. "Feminist Options in Vag Magazine - Sociological Images" . Retrieved 2023-11-29.
  12. ↑ Wetterlund, Alice (2010-10-19). ""Vag" Is Lame". Slate. ISSN   1091-2339 . Retrieved 2023-11-29.
  13. ↑ Bobel, Chris (2010-05-05). "New Blood". Rutgers University Press. doi:10.36019/9780813549538. ISBN   9780813549538. S2CID   242737891.


U.S. flag on television.svg

This article relating to a comedy television series in the United States is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Feminism symbol.svg

This feminism-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.