Tackling a taboo on stage

"Do you masturbate?" This is the confronting question that kicks off the fourth scene in Ways of Vagina, a feminist play written by Xiao and inspired by The Vagina Monologues by American playwright Eve Ensler. The question is asked by a teacher, played by Xiao, to her students in the opening act.

The teacher goes on to explain about the female anatomy, sexual pleasure and masturbation methods that she demonstrates using a large photo of vagina. Just as the class opens with the question, so too does it end with one: "Why do we masturbate?"

The next lines of the play are improvised, coming from young women in the audience: "Because I'm bored!" "Out of curiosity!" "To expend energy!" "It helps me sleep better!" "To explore my own body!" "For sexual independence and to break away from men's control!"

The classroom scene in Ways of Vagina is based on stories about masturbation told by the play's cast and crew. Penning the play was the easy part, said Xiao. Getting the audience to open up about an intensely private act in public was much harder.

"It was surprising. Once one person starts speaking, many others will be brave and follow suit. The reasons they give for why women masturbate inevitably resonate with the play's script, and sometimes are even livelier," Xiao said.

Women account for around 70 percent of the play's audience on average. In addition to attracting university students at on-campus shows, the play has also been performed to female migrant workers who also aren't shy about sharing their experiences.

Many of Xiao's ideas for the play were inspired by The Hite Report on Female Sexuality by German feminist Shere Hite. The 1976 study triggered heated debate about female sexuality and challenged the sexual status quo in the West.

The report found 82 percent of women masturbate, among whom 95 percent were able to orgasm at will. Fast-forward more than 30 years to China and the figures are surprisingly similar.

Findings of a June 2013 report by scholars at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou revealed that 70 percent of female university students masturbate. Only 9 percent of students from both genders have a negative attitude towards masturbation, while 28 percent consider it healthy in moderation.

"Even though we don't talk about masturbation in public, many people have a positive attitude toward it," said Xiao.