LIBBY

SKALA

Performer Writer

THE VANCOUVER SUN

Tuesday, September 26, 2006

Tribute to grandmother a lovely, warm memory

  REVIEW | Simple props

electrify transformation

                         LILIA!

                                                  Pacific Theatre to Oct. 7

                                                      Tickets $16 to $32

                                                     

                        BY PETER BIRNIE

                                    VANCOUVER SUN

                         ______________

Libby Skala does a lovely job of honouring her grand-

mother in Lilia! The exclamation mark is entirely

appropriate, since Lilia Skala was very much the kind

of person who lived! life!

She was the first female architect in Austria, and a first

lady of the stage until the Nazis stormed in.  Fleeing to

the U.S. without two words of English to rub together,

Skala was acting on Broadway within two years and a

fixture on television when that medium was still in its               Libby Skala stars in Lilia! at

infancy. We know her best as the unstoppable mother            Pacific Theatre to October 7

superior who leads her nuns in browbeating Sidney            

Poitier's character in Lilies of the Field.

Granddaughter Libby spent the start of Rosh Hashanah on Friday doing what's appropriate for the Jewish new year -- resolving to honour her amazing grandmother with the Vancouver debut of Lilia! On a stage set only with two facing chairs atop cosy woven rugs, Libby bounced back and forth between herself at various ages and the woman whose towering ego both helped Libby grow and kept her in check.

The younger Skala wraps herself in a colourful scarf and rich Austrian accent to become her grandmother. The effect is electric, as Lilia acts with all the grande dame mannerisms of any diva. She swans and swoops and dispenses advice to little Libby with the confidence of someone who is absolutely convinced anyone can do anything if they put their mind to it.

Lilia's adventures are so interesting that the 90-minute solo show could consist entirely of her stories and still come in a winner. Libby chooses, however, to temper the tales with contrapuntal criticism of Lilia's enormous ego, which is shown in gentle ways to be something that stands in the way of happiness for the aging actress.

Lilia's marriage, for instance, is shown to be a hollow vessel. And when Libby grows to be old enough to act herself, Lilia is horrified to learn that the girl will be touring in a puppet troupe -- and sharing her flophouse hotel rooms with a man! The resulting assault by Skala Senior on poor Libby's fragile sense of self is only meant to help the girl avoid artistic disaster, but still smacks of snobbery from the aristocratic, autocratic Austrian.

Obviously Libby holds no grudge, for Lilia! is filled with a strong sense of the deep bond that existed between the two women before Lilia passed away in 1994. The result of this lovely tribute piece is a simply satisfying sense of warmth and remembrance.

Sun Theatre Critic  pbirnie@png.canwest.com                  © The Vancouver Sun 2006