By Eileen Wingard
LOS ANGELES — I remember Mona Golabek’s mother, Lisa, as a beautiful, elegant woman with a charming Austrian accent. She was known to be a fine pianist and the teacher of her two talented daughters, Mona and Renee. Only after reading Mona’s book, The Children of Willesden Lane, did I learn of Lisa Jura’s early life. Her story, as a Viennese Jewish child sent to England on the Kindertransport, is portrayed by Mona in The Pianist of Willesden Lane, adapted and directed by Hershey Felder. It is now playing, through July 31, at the Geffen Playhouse in the Westwood area of Los Angeles.
I marveled at Mona’s acting ability. I knew she had an expressive voice, having heard her syndicated radio program, The Romantic Hours, which combines music with poetry. But this one-woman show required more than pleasant sounding utterances. Mona proved herself to be a consummate actor in this convincing portrayal of her mother, Lisa.
In the course of the play, Mona mimicked the piano teacher in Vienna who terminated his piano lessons with his Jewish student for fear of Nazi reprisals; she rendered the character of Lisa’s relative in England, who was moving to smaller quarters in the countryside and could not take little Lisa in; and she assumed the persona of the woman in charge of the orphanage on Willesden Lane where Lisa was sent.
Having known Mona since her childhood, it was no surprise to hear her superb artistry at the piano. She displayed remarkable talent at an early age. I remember the Young Musicians Foundation’ Debut Orchestra concert years ago when 14 year-old Mona and my sister, 13-year-old Zina Schiff, were the featured soloists. A few years later, Mona won the first prize in piano from the Young Musicians Foundation Competition and the following year, Zina won first prize in violin. I watched Mona’s career as a concert pianist unfold. During my tenure as a member of the San Diego Symphony, Mona and her younger sister, Renee, performed several times as Duo Pianists with the orchestra. Unfortunately, Renee, who was married and had children, passed away several years ago.
As a pianist, Mona has uncanny power coupled with a sensitive lyrical touch. She knows how to capture the mood of the music. Throughout the script, she performs excerpts ranging from the Grieg Piano Concerto, with recorded orchestral accompaniment, to selections by Beethoven, Chopin, Debussy and others. At the end of the play, we hear the entire finale from the Grieg Piano Concerto. Her playing was so beautiful, it made me wish that I could listen to each work in its entirety.
Mona, as Hershey Felder does in his plays about composers Chopin, Beethoven, Gershwin and Bernstein, has mastered the ability to speak while she plays. This is no easy fete.
The Pianist of Willesdan Lane is a gripping tale of a young girl, away from her family, carrying out her mother’s wish to hold on to her music. It spans cataclysmic epochs of World War II from Kristalnacht and the bombing of Britain to the Allied invasion of Europe and D-Day.
The hour and forty minute-long saga is an outstanding theatrical experience filled with poignant drama and beautiful music.
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Wingard is a retired violinist for the San Diego Symphony and a freelance writer. She may be contacted at eileen.wingard@sdjewishworld.com