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There's certainly no stopping these three riveting performers. Under Pedi's taut direction, they simply sit on tall chairs, and, from their music stands, read what Ensler culled from more than 200 interviews.

Ensler talked to women of nearly every age, race, creed, and walk of life. She distilled what she considered the best observations into a 90-minute, intermissionless evening. She used plenty of euphemisms for comic effect, and almost as many vulgar ones, which will shock some theatergoers, and greatly amuse others. "The Vagina Monologues" leaves little to the imagination, and only stops short of giving the women laser pointers and slide projections.

The playwright's subtext is clear: Girls grow up, constantly being told not to discuss sex -- not even to think about it. That insular belief, however, brings its own problems. Hence, Ensler created an evening that she could have titled, "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Vaginas But Were Afraid to Ask." Many female theatergoers will be fascinated to find that women of other cultures have been sharing the same thoughts about their bodies.

Pedi has plenty of opportunity to show the comic insouciance she's honed in many editions of "Forbidden Broadway" in New York and Los Angeles. She delights endlessly, whether she's adopting a high-tone British voice when speaking of her "anatomical vacuum," or replicating the snarky whine of an annoyed adolescent -- or describing the mechanics of tampon insertion.

Leone has a veritable aria centering on what many would consider the crudest term for the female organ. The speech goes for many minutes, for Leone is inspired to examine each of the word's four letters. As tough as this material is, Leone plows through it full speed ahead, and because she expresses no embarrassment, the audience relaxes, too. That's even true when she gets to the topic of pubic hair.

Avery gets the show's most serious moments -- a tender recollection of the birth of a grandchild, the harrowing story of a woman who was sexually abused in her youth -- and she's excellent in every one of them. Still, when Avery must maneuver the show's most overtly erotic passage, she gets through it while maintaining her sophistication.

Forum Theatre artistic director Peter J. Loewy provided the simple set, which is three long pieces of fabric that run from the top of the proscenium arch to the lip of the stage. Technically it's not much, but it nevertheless gives the theater one of its most elegant-looking settings in years.

It's also nice to see that the Forum is up and running with a genuine season, which it hasn't consistently offered in recent years. Three more shows will open here in each of the next three months. Here's hoping that they're all as captivating as this one.