Casting, directing and rehearsing for a play about the joy of the male genitalia within the span of a week can be a very tiring ordeal, but the Outlaws Theatre group is certainly up to the task.

The Outlaws will be putting on The Penis Monologues for the fourth year running at 11:15 tonight in The Pavilion Theatre.

As is tradition, the show is being directed by two women, Melissa Carlile (sophomore-theatre) and Jessica Waber (sophomore-theatre). The cast, consisting of 23 actors hand-picked by the directors, had less than a week to rehearse the humorous sketches, which have themes ranging from coming to grips with the discovery of masturbation to circumcision to fellatio etiquette.

Carlile and Waber said they never felt very intimidated while directing the show, despite being heavily outnumbered by the male actors.

"We were overwhelmed by penises, but we kept them in control by dressing conservatively and enticing them with food and beer," Carlile said.

Waber added that she felt honored to have a hand in this year's penile program.

"Both Melissa and I feel very empowered to be in charge of 23 penises," she said. "That's almost one per hour in a day."

The actors have similarly made sure to simply have a good time while practicing for their solo segments.

"It's really been fun going home every night and tackling this project," Stephen Burd (senior-theatre and education) said. "I've put a lot of time and effort into it."

Other actors are just as visibly excited.

"I've been prepping for this role for 21 years," Dan Hopper (senior-theatre) said.

Rehearsals proved difficult for many of the actors involved, who found it hard to keep straight faces in light of the phallic subject matter. Cries of "I am the penis!" and explanations of "cockjaw" during a couple of monologues often sent the cast into hysterics. In one monologue, one actor exclaims that the glories of Internet porn allow him "to have sex with three women at once."

Some might find the show educational, however, as one sketch details nearly four dozen nicknames for the sexual organ, including "pulsating purple titan," "Johnny One Eye and his bald-headed friends" and "Pedro."

Carlile said she understands that, at first glance, many may consider The Penis Monologues to be a direct parody of its vaginal counterpart, The Vagina Monologues, but she hopes people are able to see beyond the misconception.

"It's merely a way for men to come together and bask in their manhood," she said. "Typically, you would think that 23 guys sitting around talking about their penises would turn women away, but actually, it usually makes them come. In directing this as women, we've really had to come to grips with the penis."

The Penis Monologues is free of charge, so there's no need to spend all your money on expensive Valentine's festivities this year. The show starts at 11:15 p.m. in the Pavilion Theater.