How was your first time? Was it painful? Exhilarating? Humiliating? Was it true what they say about band camp, or church camp, or those roommate-warding socks on dorm doorknobs? Was it your high school or college sweetheart, some stranger at a party, maybe someone you thought was in the friend file? Was it his or her first time, too? Did you plan for the big event? Had you worked your way up to it for months, or was it over in a moment of weakness? Were you ready? Were you willing? Were you protected? Was it love?

Why, yes, I too have an amusing story about my first ... OK, so maybe it isn't suitable for this particular venue, but I can tell you it ended positively for everyone concerned. You probably have your own funny, shocking, moving defloration account. You may have even been gutsy enough to post it on MyFirstTime.com, a website that catalogs anonymous milestone stories, most of which appear to be true. The site's been active since the Internet's inception. Over the last 16 years, it's attracted tens of thousands of writers whose memories range from all over the tragicomedy spectrum. Why, that might make for a fun night of storytelling, you imagine, and you would be right. In fact, it has: My First Time: The Play opened off-Broadway in 2007 and ran for two and a half years, spawning productions all over the world. In it, two female and two male actors perform a series of highlights from the archive, offering insight into our most intimate selves. "This has been my favorite course of study in college," one character reveals, "and I'm thinking of going to grad school to pursue this undeclared major." My First Time may not be everyone's idea of a perfect first date, but I can promise you this: it will inspire fascinating post-show conversation.

As the Internet evolves, so do our views of and exposure to sexuality. We live in a lust-frenzied world, overwhelming for young people and almost as scary for grown-ups determined to protect them. Yet even now, when our moment of truth arrives, it requires us to overcome our deepest vulnerabilities and move forward toward adulthood and, ideally, love.  

MY FIRST TIME, 8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday, through Oct. 26, Centerstage! Theatre, 3200 SW Dash Point Rd., Federal Way, $10-$50, 253.661.1444