While Valentine's Day has been celebrated as "Vagina Day" the world over by enthusiasts of the off-Broadway hit The Vagina Monologues, a group of Penn State students are determined to make sure male genitalia gets some love, too.

The Penis Monologues is a lighthearted take on The Vagina Monologues and is not to be taken seriously, said Scott Andrews, a producer of the Outlaws, the student group behind the show.

"It's really a comical take," he said.

The Outlaws have been performing The Penis Monologues since 2000, and each year, it evolves, said Jason Cassidy, writer of the monologues.

"I think the show started out as being 20 minutes long, and now, there are enough monologues to make it two hours long," he said.

Cassidy first conceived the idea for his version in the beginning of his sophomore year and has written for it ever since.

He said he has shaped his monologues around personal experiences, observations and stories he has heard from friends. Now, a part-time graduate student, he continues to write new monologues.

"Men take themselves seriously where sexuality is concerned. I just wanted to show how silly and ridiculous it is and show self-differentiation," Cassidy said. "The whole point is to make people laugh and talk about things not normally discussed."

The Penis Monologues are a less-than-serious response to The Vagina Monologues and is not intended to offend fans of Eve Ensler's show.

"I'm not trying to make fun of The Vagina Monologues at all," Cassidy said. "Those monologues are important and relevant, but I wanted to examine sexuality from a male standpoint."

Despite the masculine subject matter, women have a hand in the show's production.

"Women have been directing from the beginning," Cassidy said. This year's directors are Sara Vattimo and Molly Graham.

"Having females direct The Penis Monologues is just a crazy tradition; I'm not exactly sure when it started," Vattimo said. "I guess the show is funny viewed and directed from a girl's perspective."

Graham recommends seeing the phallic performance in conjunction with The Vagina Monologues, which conclude in Schwab Auditorium a half-hour before The Penis Monologues start in the Forum Building, Graham said.

"It will be a whole Valentine's Day genitalia thing," she said.

The show has gained popularity each year, and as a consequence, venues for the monologues have been crammed, Andrews said.

"My freshman year, I saw the monologues, and my junior year, I was in them. Each time, it was extremely crowded," he said, adding that last year "people were standing in the front and sitting on garbage cans in order to watch the show."

Andrews called the production a unique option to the "common dinner date on Valentine's Day."

The show's off-color humor and risqué jokes are what make The Penis Monologues a worthwhile show, Cassidy said.

"Everyone likes being a little naughty once in a while," he said.