Libby Skala - Darien Times, etc. 3

Greenwich Post, The Darien Times, New Canaan Advertiser,

The Ridgefield Press The Wilton Bulletin, The Redding Pilot,

The Weston Forum, The Lewisboro Ledger

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2002

ARTS & LEISURE

Libby Skala: Performing in a show with a life of its own

Fringe Festival critics called Libby Skala's performance "spellbinding"

and the show has continued in performances elsewhere,

including The Sanford Meisner Theatre in New York City

by FRAN SIKORSKI

Success ahead

Back in 1996, when actress Libby Skala, formerly of Darien, was living in Seattle, she did not know that in five years she would be living in New York, have a one-woman show and travel around the world performing it to critical acclaim.

Encouraged by her improvisation teacher who had suggested she write a show about her grandmother, Viennese-born actress Lilia Skala, Libby said she had no idea how to start, but the show gradually evolved. The actress plays both her grandmother and herself in the 75-minute production.

Lilia Skala was the first female architect in Austria, a stage star in Max Reinhardt's theatre, and a penniless World War II refugee who worked her way out of a New York zipper factory to a career on Broadway, and in television and film. Lilia earned award nominations for her performances in Roseland (Golden Globe) and Eleanor and Franklin (Emmy); and for her role as Mother Superior in the 1963 film classic Lilies of the Field with Sidney Poitier, she garnered both Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations.

Work-in-progress

Before she died in 1994, Lilia had asked her granddaughter to write a part for her, and Libby began developing the show. Many friends came to the show as boosters, and Lilia! developed on stage, in practice, in front of audiences. Some supporters of Lilia! saw as many as six shows, catching the one-woman play, which was also performed in Darien, at all stages of development.

In Lilia! the actress said she transforms from a young child to her 90-year-old grandmother, back and forth from one character to the other, as the story emerges of a bittersweet relationship in which the grande dame serves as a mentor, role model, and at times an unwitting adversary.

While Lilia! was being performed in Winnipeg, an audience member approached Libby Skala about the possibility of the show going to the 2001 Fringe Festival in Edinburgh, Scotland. When she submitted material for the festival, she was invited to perform it at The Gilded Balloon, one of the three most prominent venues at the festival.

European debut

The actress accepted the invitation, only later realizing what a tremendous mountain this would be to climb. More than 1700 shows participate in the Edinburgh Fringe Festival annually, not to mention five other festivals simultaneously occurring in Edinburgh. Costs for theater rental, insurance, housing, travel, technical staff, advertising, etc., all added up to "grandiose proportions," according to Ms. Skala.

In order to fund the trip to Edinburgh, the actress planned a benefit performance of Lilia! two months before the festival, under the aegis of Artistic New Directions, a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization.

Off Broadway production

Fringe Festival critics called Libby Skala's performance "spellbinding" and the show has continued in performances elsewhere, including The Sanford Meisner Theatre in New York City this year from September to October. The show was directed by Tony Award nominee Gabriel Barre, who recently directed the Off-Broadway production of The Summer of '42, the national tour of Cinderella starring Eartha Kitt, and King of Hearts, current production at the Goodspeed Opera House.

In a recent note to this column Libby Skala said she had thought the improvisation of Lilia! "might merely act as a showcase of my talents leading to other work, and now the show seems to have a life of its own."

Copy to Sidney

The actress, who was interviewed for a Hersam Acorn Newspapers Arts and Leisure Feature more than a year ago, said she sent a copy of the published story to Academy Award winner Sidney Poitier who starred in Lilies of the Field opposite her grandmother.

Last Updated: 3/4/2009

LIBBY

SKALA

Performer Writer