Ending Women’s Month with a Bang: Durex calls for ‘pleasure for all’ through female-led comedy show

Still can’t talk about pleasure and sex? C’mon, it’s already 2023! The youngest millennials would already be 27 — OLD ENOUGH to make their own decisions, start their own family, and even talk about the most taboo subjects in the Philippines! While men usually have it easier as they’re labeled “macho” for talking about their sex life, women often get called “malandi” (flirty) or a slut for doing so. That doesn’t seem fair, right?

To help give women a voice and open up the conversation about “pleasure for all”, condom brand Durex ended Women’s Month with “LOL for All, Pleasure for All” stand-up comedy show last March 30 at SELTSAM-Makati, headlined by women from different age groups and sexualities. Dubbed as the “three Ladies of Laughter”, attendees laughed out loud with Comedy Manila’s Issa Villaverde and Jeannie Lacay, and TV and movie actress Donna Cariaga (one of my personal favorites when it comes to new gen comedy)!

Host Baus Rufo

An empowering kind of comedy

While some would think of stand-up comedy shows as something that involves comedians degrading members of the audience, “LOL for All, Pleasure for All” does the opposite. As funny as the jokes may seem, they’re all very relatable and empowering, making one think “Wow, someone finally said it!” and may even be used as quotable quotes in the future.

Villaverde, Laccay, and Cariaga poked fun at their personal experiences when it comes to sex, pleasure, and what it’s like to be a woman exploring her sexuality in a healthy and responsible way (because we’re already overpopulated here in the Philippines), and the audience — myself included — just can’t help but laugh and relate to the funniest and most awkward encounters shared by the three.

Comedy Manila’s Issa Villaverde

Villaverde, who openly identifies as a bisexual woman, put the spotlight on machismo. Male pride can sometimes hinder men from providing pleasure to their partners.

“I find that straight men are very ma-pride when it comes to sex. Ang daming mayayabang na, ‘Babe, hindi ko kailangan ng lube.’ ‘Pare, walang nagfafake ng orgasm sa akin, pare.’ Kaya I appreciate that the girls I am dating know what pleasure is. So guys, please don’t hesitate to use lube. Like, that’s how we come together,” she quipped.

Comedy Manila’s Jeannie Laccay

Meanwhile, Laccay pointed out the similarities of comedy and sex. In both comedy and sex, men always come first—in more ways than one. But women are just as capable as men, she explained.

“We’re used to having men doing stand-up, right? So medyo effort sa amin dito na magpatawa. But it’s okay, because I always challenge myself. Like, I really want a job where most men are good at and I’m proud to tell you that I’ve finally made it. Isa na po akong tambay,” she joked.

Actress Donna Cariaga – my fave!

Cariaga poked fun at how men are celebrated for their sexuality, but women are sometimes shamed for it.

Sa Pilipinas, ang sex ay mas advantage rin ng mga lalaki… Tignan ninyo, ang
lalaki, kapag may bakat, ang sikip ng pantalon niya, badge of honor niya yun, di ba? Pero bakit ang babae kapag may camel toe, hindi pwedeng masikip lang ang underwear namin today?”
she shared.

Maraming salamat Durex dahil sa mga ganitong programa, nabibigyan ng boses ang mga babae. Dahil sa totoo lang, meron pa rin tayong social construct na kailangang basagin sa usapang sex ng babae at lalaki. Kailangan na natin siyang basagin,” added Cariaga. Such a kween! Preach it, girl!

Pleasure is for everyone

Aside from the sets, attendees also played games that really gave them a voice — literally! I’ve never heard someone shout “BLOW JOB!” as loud as one of the players that night. The event really gave women an avenue to talk about what makes them feel good, open topics that overly religious people from the outside world would crucify them for, and allow them to champion self-acceptance. Everyone, after all, deserves to have fun and pleasure, said Camille Taguba, Durex Philippines Brand Manager.

“I’m very happy to close Women’s Month with this very sexy, pleasurable, and funny night with our funny ladies. With Durex, we want to provide you with products for you to explore your pleasure. Everyone deserves pleasure. Whenever with our condoms, lubricants, or toys, we want to equip you to explore your pleasure and we want to open up the conversation with sex and
pleasure,” Taguba said.

And before anyone comes at me for advocating for responsible sex and talking about condom brands, let me say this in advance: Healthy and responsible sex will ALWAYS be better than having sexually transmitted diseases or worse — lots of kids that you can’t even send to school nor feed properly on the daily. Sex education and family planning are important. It’s about time we direct our energies on advocating for the right things.

Oh, and you can get a discount from Durex when you click on these links from Lazada and Shopee, and scan the code below:

Don’t worry, this isn’t an April Fool’s joke! 😉

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4 Replies to “Ending Women’s Month with a Bang: Durex calls for ‘pleasure for all’ through female-led comedy show”

  1. Yes yes yes
    Responsible talaga tayo sa pagdating sa bagay na ganon at
    Maganda makinig ganitong topics
    Matatawa tayo ng slight at the same time marami din Tayo matutunan

  2. Napaka gandang topic na dapat talagang tinatalakay SA ngayon sure ang daming natutunan dito at Kala natin joke pero SA totoo Lang nangyayari talaga

  3. Ang gandaa ng ganitong event , totoo lahat dun lang tayo sa realtalk and ang dmi dn learnings na natutunan 🥰

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