About Us

Mission

Show Some Skin gives voice to unspoken stories about identity and difference. We respectfully present anonymous submissions about individuals’ experiences by combining the arts of personal storytelling and performance. Our production strives to be a catalyst for the campus community’s discovery and appreciation of Notre Dame’s true diversity.

How can you help?

To accomplish our mission, we need your help. The impact of Show Some Skin depends on the input of people like you. The production of the show is no small feat, and we appreciate all the help we’ve received in the past. We need your help to make it even better every year. You can help through acting, submitting your monologue, lending your marketing and design skills or website mastery, or volunteering as needed. Along with these, faculty can further be involved by inviting one of our representatives to your classroom. Contact us at s.someskin@gmail.com

History

Show Some Skin started from “Asiatic Gaze,” a biweekly column circle for The Observer made up of Edith Cho, JeeSeun Choi, and Hien Luu. With a mission to dedicate many words to diversity, the writers felt the need to take more action on issues of identity and race due to the lack of conversations about race relations at Notre Dame. Countless supporters made the first year’s production – The Race Monologues – a great success in March 2012.

The first year’s Call for Stories brought over a hundred original monologues from the ND community. In total, 700+ audience members attended the inaugural show in Carey Auditorium over two nights. The Race Monologues revealed much complexity and ambivalence concerning race and intersecting categories of identity. This led to the expansion of the production’s theme in 2013: It’s Complicated. The 2013 Call for Stories explored the intersections of identity, asking questions like: “What makes you complex? What’s complicated about the intersections of the different facets of your self? What’s complicated about your experiences with others?” This broader direction engaged diverse topics such as food stamps, body image, mental illnesses, and conformity. The next years’ Call for Stories asked the Notre Dame community to dig deeper and share even more about themselves. As in 2012, the subsequent shows were wildly successful, with standing-room-only audiences for each three-night run.