Libby Skala & Lilia

Libby and her grandmother, Lilia

Libby created a one-woman show, Lilia, about her grandmother -- the first woman architect in Austria, and a leading actor in Max Reinhardt's fabled company. I saw Libby do an excerpt for her TPS audition, and it was fantastic.

Here is an interview with Libby on how she created the show. Here is her website.


Libby today

She began creating the material by just sitting each evening with a piece of paper, on which she would write, "God directed..." And then she'd wait. Whatever came, she'd write down. What came was about her grandmother. Pages of it.

It grew slowly, over the years. One day someone said, "Why don't you mount your show in our theatre?" She said, "What show?" "The one about your grandmother." "That's not a show, that's just some pieces." "Well, mount the pieces then." She did, people loved it.

Later, she decided to make the material into a proper story. But she noticed she now no longer enjoyed performing it: the grandmother had become a scold, lost her charm. So she dropped the story, went back to her original gentle montage, and bam -- there was her play.


Lilia in 1930

I'm blown away that Lilia was in Reinhardt's company.

Reinhardt was one of the best directors in the world, in the early 1900's. I've most closely followed his crowd work; he was exceptional at getting crowds to act realistically. The key was, he'd break them into little groups with captains, and then give them autonomy. He was also in eternal search of the perfect theatre space, so he directed everywhere -- big houses, little houses, non-theatre spaces -- and did well in all of them.

Anyway, enjoy the interview. And the show.