Alumna explores eating disorders, body image

March is not just the month of basketball madness, it's also National Women's History Month, a proposed time to appreciate the dedication and perseverance of strong women.\nIn honor of the month, IU alumna Amy Fortoul will perform a one-woman show at 8 p.m. tonight at Rose Firebay in the John Waldron Arts Center. Her performance will expose the harsh realities that many woman face everyday. The piece, "This Is My Body," is a spoken-word performance, which she wrote, directs and performs in.\nSenior Alfonso Lerma of the Indiana Memorial Union board of directors said he saw the need for involvement in bringing this performance to campus.\n"In times of observance such as Women's History Month, it is important for Union Board to be active in demonstrating social awareness for issues that concern students," he said. "I felt that Ms. Fortoul's emotionally charged exploration of a woman's perception of self and the way in which that perception is shaped is of immense educational value to all students."\nThe show's content, intended for mature audiences, centers around eating disorders and sexuality. Lerma said he hopes Fortoul's performance will be thought-provoking to students and stimulate discussion. \nThe show's content projects the idea that culture and family play a strong part in forming a young woman's self-image, according to a press release. It tells the story of self-punishment in the form of anorexia, bulimia and sexual suppression, as well as the healing that comes when emotional strength is regained. \nFortoul, who was a theater major at IU, was treated for bulimia in 1995 at Bloomington Hospital's Eating Disorders Unit in an outpatient rehabilitation program. \n"The program both saved and changed my life," Fortoul said. "I feel a responsibility to help other women suffering from an eating disorder. I want them to know that healing is possible."\nTara Hayes, the forums chair for Mortar Board Senior National Honor Society, organized this event. \n"I think it's really important to promote awareness because this isn't a problem for just students or even on this campus, it's a problem in our country, our nation and I feel it really deserves the attention," she said.\nHayes said she believes Fortoul's piece, which comes at the end of Women's Awareness Week is a beneficial experience that will be well worth students' Friday evening. \n"It's not just a performance, but a really great way to outreach, to show others that it is OK to be going through these types of issues and there is hope for healing," she said. "Mortar Board really believed in this outreach and we took a vote and the consensus was to not charge for the event. It's not about money, but about promoting Mortar Board which was founded on raising awareness of women's principles and rights," Hayes said. \nStudents attending the event at the John Waldron Arts Center will have no cover charge, but the general public must pay $10. For more information on the event, contact the Waldron Arts Center at 334-3100.