IT WAS, so to speak, my first time.

And like so many things in life, talking to those in the know cannot prepare you for the Vagina Monologues.

The three voice-pieces of the production, Jerry Hall, Ruth Madoc and Nikki Sanderson were a formidable trio, straddling the monologues' vast range of emotions and characters with genuine feeling and obvious enjoyment.

They conveyed three distinct characters, yet complemented each other brilliantly, and held the audience for the whole night.

The monologues themselves are beautifully crafted into brief snapshots, from the outrageous to the poignant to the awe-inspiring.

And in an age when feminism is out of fashion, the audience's sometimes uncomfortable giggles served as a reminder that taboos still surround the heady combination of women, power and pleasure.

Ruth Madoc played the night out like a music-hall romp, with her Hi-De-Hi- meets-When-Harry-Met-Sally moment winning one of the evening's biggest laughs.

Nikki Sanderson showed great diversity and her whispered account of an abused war-victim was met with a moment of silence, which spoke louder than any applause.

Meanwhile the strong presence of Jerry Hall anchored the trio excellently.

The Vagina Monologues plunges deeper and soars higher than I expected.

It is full of shocks and laughs, but best of all it is a rich celebration of all that is most explicitly female.

Runs until Saturday.