I was too late to get tickets for the quickly sold out Simpatico at Red Orchid Theatre, as much as I'd have loved to have seen that play, for me it had a terrific silver lining, it opened up my afternoon to see a play that was not planned but came highly recommended by friends and critics: The Pianist of Willesden Lane, performed at the Royal George Theatre.
I was very fortunate that this play had extended a few times, so it magically fit my trip timeframe.
The play is a one woman show, it tells the true story of the performers mother who was a young Jewish girl, dreaming to become a concert pianist in Vienna, a dream rudely interrupted by World War II.
Mona Golabek is a gifted pianist herself, as she tells us her mothers (Lisa Jura) story through monologue and soliloquy, interspersed with beautiful classical piano performances she takes us the audience on a tour through the devastating events of the late 30's Vienna, where Jewish people were slowly stripped of their rights and the horrible truth of what 'The Anschluss" would mean for many people. Lisa's dream of making her concert debut at the revered Musikverein is shattered as her professor is no longer allowed to 'teach the Jews'.
Lisa's father manages to get one ticket for the kinder transport, an escape route offered in which the UK is allowing a limited amount of jewish children in the country. He only manages one ticket, the family has three children so now the parents have to decide which child to send to safety, they decide on Lisa and send her to family in London so she can continue her piano lessons there, follow her dream and fulfill her parents hopes for her. Lisa arrives in London only to find the uncle unwilling to take care of her and she is sent by the kinder transport organization to work 'in service' at a mansion in the country.
This is where the story starts to evolve solely around Lisa, her journey through heart-ship and pain but with great determination to fulfill the dream to become a concert pianist, not just because it was her dream, but even more so because it was what made her parents decide she would be the one sent to the UK on that one kindertransport ticket.
It is a very moving story, and Mona Golabek delivers it with such true emotion we are taken by the hand and are living her story to a certain degree. The stage is set bare, with a big Steinway piano and Mona Golabek dressed in all black. Behind her there are huge portrait frames where at the appropriate moments in her story we see family portraits and footage of the war. It's a much used prop in plays, but works very good in this show, at times suddenly this is no longer a one woman show but we see her family and friends on stage. Very impressive.
Lisa survives all the tribulations of course (since her daughter is right before us telling her story) but what of her family? her parents who sent her to London, her sisters who had to stay behind in Vienna?
after the story is told, and the entire audience is on their feet giving a massive standing ovation, we get an epilogue on what happened... we sit down, listen and watch for another few minutes only to rise to our feet again for another standing ovation when the play is really over and Mona has to give many curtain calls... I'll not spoil the ending, but I can tell you there was not a dry eye in the audience.
Honestly I was so very happy to have seen this play, I shed many tears, it's definitely not a very uplifting play, but it was so very good and we need to be reminded of the truth of the horrible history of this world every now and then. When I left the theatre I wandered around the area for a while, trying to get my emotions to cool down a bit, it was an unsettling afternoon, but one I will never forget.
photo's by Michael Lamont
Play overview from Broadwayworld.com
Set in Vienna in 1938 and in London during the Blitzkrieg, THE PIANIST OF WILLESDEN LANE tells the true story of Mona Golabek's mother, noted pianist and author Lisa Jura. A young Jewish pianist, Lisa dreams of a concert debut at the storied Musikverein concert hall. When Lisa is sent on the kinder transport to London to protect her from the Nazi regime, everything about her life is upended except her love of music and her pursuit of her dream. Golabek performs some of the world's most beloved piano music in this poignant true story of her mother's experience in wartime Europe. Adapted and directed by local favorite Hershey Felder, THE PIANIST OF WILLESDEN LANE is a riveting tale of hope that is a powerful testament to how music helps us survive through our darkest times.
"This beautiful tale told by Mona Golabek herself is performed in the style of musical storytelling that Chicago audiences have come to know from me," said adapter/director Hershey Felder, creator and performer of audience favorites including George Gershwin Aloneand Maestro: Leonard Bernstein. "Being able to work with her to present this piece has been an incredible joy both because her skill as a musician enables the evening to showcase some of the world's most beautiful and enduring piano music ever composed, and also because no one else could tell this story the way she can."
American concert pianist Mona Golabek has appeared at the Hollywood Bowl, the Kennedy Center and the Royal Festival Hall alongside major orchestras worldwide. A Grammy nominee, she has been the recipient of numerous awards including the Avery Fisher Prize, and has been the subject of several PBS television documentaries. Golabek is the creator and voice of The Romantic Hours, a syndicated radio program which combines classical music with readings of poetry, letters, and stories, and can be heard on 80 stations and XM Satellite Radio. Golabek and her family are founders of the non-profit Hold On To Your Music, which spreads the message of the power of the arts, especially music, to embolden the human spirit. In addition, Golabek and Lee Cohen are award-winning authors of The Children of Willesden Lane, the book upon which THE PIANIST OF WILLESDEN LANE is based.
Hershey Felder (Adaptation/Director)
Broadway, London's West End: George Gershwin Alone (Helen Hayes Theatre, Duchess Theatre). Regional and international appearances of "Composers Sonata" (1999-2013) - George Gershwin Alone, Monsieur Chopin, Beethoven, As I Knew Him, and Maestro: Leonard Bernstein - include Old Globe Theatre, Arizona Theatre Company,Geffen Playhouse, Laguna Playhouse, Ford's Theatre, Cleveland Playhouse, Pasadena Playhouse, American Repertory Theater, Hartford Stage, Ravinia Festival, Chicago's Royal George Theatre, Asolo Repertory Theatre,Prince Music Theater, The Gilmore International Keyboard Festival, Uijeongbu Theater Festival (South Korea) and many others, as well as a command performance of Monsieur Chopin for the Polish Ambassador to the United States, Polish Embassy, Washington. Winner of 2007 Los Angeles Ovation Awards, Best Musical and Best Actor forGeorge Gershwin Alone. Compositions include Aliyah, Concerto for Piano and Orchestra; Fairytale, a musical; Les Anges de Paris, Suite for Violin and Piano; Song Settings, poetry by Vachel Lindsay; Saltimbanques for Piano and Orchestra; Etudes Thematiques for Piano; An American Story for Actor and Orchestra. Recordings include Love Songs of the Yiddish Theatre, Back from Broadway, George Gershwin Alone and Monsieur Chopin for the WFMT Radio Network Recordings label;Beethoven, As I Knew Him and An American Story for the Eighty Eight Entertainment label. Worldwide live broadcasts, George Gershwin Alone, July 2005 and May 2011. Current projects include a new musical, An American Story, recorded with Chicago's Ars Viva Symphony conducted by Alan Heatherington. Mr. Felder has been a Scholar in Residence at Harvard University's Department of Music and is married to Kim Campbell, former Prime Minister of Canada.
The artistic team for THE PIANIST OF WILLESDEN LANE is led by Director Hershey Felder with Associate Direction by Trevor Hay. Scenic Design is by David Buess and Trevor Hay , Sound Design is by Erik Carstensen, Lighting Design is by Chris Rynne, Projection Design is by Greg Sowizdrzal and Andrew Wilder, and Scenic Construction is by Christian Thorsen and David Buess. Erik Carstensen serves as Production Manager and the Production Stage Manager is Brett Taylor.
The performance schedule for THE PIANIST OF WILLESDEN LANE is now through Sunday, July 7th. Performance times are: Wednesdays & Thursdays at 7:30 p.m., Fridays at 8 p.m. Saturdays at 2 p.m & 8 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m. Tickets are $44 on Wednesdays and Thursdays, and $49 on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. Tickets are now on sale at The Royal George Theatre and may be purchased by calling 312.988.9000. Box office hours are 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Tickets may also be purchased online atwww.theroyalgeorgetheatre.com.
review blurbs:
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Chicago Tribune - Highly Recommended
"...In many ways, the simple act of Golabek sitting down at the Steinway piano that occupies the stage of the Royal George Theatre is a perfect statement of the play's main themes and enough to make your mouth fall open with a certain wonder at the way of the world. In watching this middle-aged woman's hands move in service of the creation of beautiful music, the sacrifices of her grandparents are made manifest. The Nazis succeeded neither in wiping out this family nor its accomplished artistry, here passed down to the next generation. The Nazis are gone. The piano playing goes on. It's all laid out before you in the most immediate, theatrical way."
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Chris Jones
Chicago Sun Times - Highly Recommended
"...'The Pianist of Willesden Lane," Mona Golabek's exquisitely rendered musical memoir - now in a limited engagement at the Royal George Theatre - begins, fittingly enough, with an exhilarating description of her mother, Lisa Jura, as she boards a trolley in Vienna and heads off to the highlight of her week - a piano lesson. She is 14 years old."
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Hedy Weiss
Chicago Reader - Somewhat Recommended
"...Golabek is a marvelous pianist--bright, strong, agile, and emotive. But as an actress, she's, well, a marvelous pianist. Physically and vocally unsophisticated, she lacks the chops to handle a character who ages from 13 to about 20 in the course of the story. What's more, the story itself isn't that remarkable in the lore of the Holocaust. All Golabek has to say is "Jewish," "Vienna," and "1938," and we've pretty much got the gist. Her obvious urge to valorize her mother doesn't help, either. Ironically, Golabek seems to have a much more intriguing story in the romance and marriage of her parents--but she only gets to that toward the end and leaves a lot of questions unanswered."
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Tony Adler
ChicagoCritic - Highly Recommended
"...The Pianist of Willesden Lane is a story we need to hear as it begs the question concerning how many other children that didn't survive who had much to contribute to humanity? We are grateful that Lisa Jura did survive and we see how her music became her beacon of hope. First Lisa and now Mona do indeed channel their departed relative through the power of music. When Golabek made her beautiful music, I recalled memories of long-gone relatives and friends. The power of music does catapult memories. Mona Golabek's story stimulates us. That is the power of the live stage, especially when it combines rich narrative and music. Miss Golabek tour de force performance is a treasure not to be missed."
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Tom Williams
Around The Town Chicago - Highly Recommended
"...Based on the book, “The Children of Willesden Lane” by Mona Golabeck and Lee Cohen, this 90 minutes is sheer artistry, by the clever adaptation by Felder and the stunning performance by Golabeck. After all, this is her mother’s story and she tells it with great heart and when she sits at The Steinway, I for one can see the emotions that cross her mind as she tells this story of hope, dreams and survival. She opens the play by introducing us to the portrait of the times- that we begin in Vienna in 1938. Her mother, was one of three daughters, but the only one that had the talent of her mother at the piano. All her life, that was her dream- to be a concert pianist. Her mother’s name was Lisa Jura. Her dream was to play in concert at Musikvere. When Lisa goes to her final lesson, filled with happiness, she is greeted at the door of her teacher by a German soldier, and finds that her teacher can no longer teach her, because she is Jewish."
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Alan Bresloff
Chicago Theatre Review - Recommended
"...This once in a lifetime show is important for many reasons. Not only is the story one that should be told over and over again. All must hear how lives were tossed, like seeds, in all directions; families torn apart and lives lost. It is a story of love of music, and piano that helped a young girl cope in such a difficult time. And finally, as the years move on, a real connection from mother to daughter to audience will be lost. Mona Golabek's beautiful love letter to her mother is moving, and rich with moments that will resonate with all audience members for years to come."
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Lazlo Collins
Chicagoland Theater Reviews - Highly Recommended
"..."The Pianist of Willesden Lane" came to Chicago with little fanfare but it has found an audience (the show has been extended to May 25). Part of its success resides in the humanity of its story and part in the perfect pitch performance by Mona Golabek. It makes for a glowing, heartening evening in the theater."
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Dan Zeff
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