THERE was an inescapable sense of anti-climax about the opening night of this six-week run of Eve Ensler’s internationally acclaimed show, directed by Irina Brown. The empty seats were due, of course, to the absence of Sharon Osbourne and her daughter Aimee, who were to perform alongside the actress Diane Parish and comedienne Jenny Eclair, but who pulled out last Friday when Aimee suffered a breast cancer scare.

The producers have lined up various replacements, but former soap stars, the pop singer Heather Small and — treat of treats — Christine Hamilton seem scant compensation. Still, the show goes on, loud and proud as ever. Drawn from interviews with hundreds of women, The Vagina Monologues has been translated into more than 35 languages, and its offshoot, the V-Day Foundation, raises money for women’s charities around the world.

And, nearly a decade after Ensler first performed it off-Broadway, one thing remains clear: put these words into any woman’s mouth and they work. Cynics may initially take some persuading. The opening line, delivered by Rula Lenska, filling in for the Osbournes until Saturday, suggests a cloying would-be naughtiness. Lenska, eyes twinkling, gurgles: “I bet you’re worried.”

Well, no. This savvy metropolitan audience isn’t remotely worried; and besides, the show is now so notorious that we all know exactly what to expect. But there are still moments that sneak up on you. The savage poetry of a girl’s account of a Bosnian rape c an elderly woman describing her vagina as a dank, deserted cellar.

The show is above all a celebration, though, and while it has had more glittering, and arguably more accomplished, casts, Lenska, Eclair and Parish are a pleasure to watch. Eclair has the timing and edginess of the seasoned stand-up, and Parish, her manner relaxed, warm and natural, presents a wonderful contrast. The elegant, patrician Lenska, meanwhile, comes into her own, so to speak, when portraying a corporate lawyer turned professional lesbian dominatrix.

Even at its most ribald, this show’s honesty and intensity demands that we take it seriously. If you’re looking for something that tickles your fancy, and now and then even stirs your soul, this just might hit the G-spot.

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