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CORVALLIS, Ore. – The Grammy-nominated artist Mona Golabek will perform in “The Pianist of Willesden Lane,” at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 27, at in the LaSells Stewart Center at Oregon State University in Corvallis.

The show is based on the book “The Children of Willesden Lane: Beyond the Kindertransport; A Memoir of Music, Love, and Survival,” by Mona Golabek and Lee Cohen. It is set in Vienna in 1938 and in London during the Blitzkrieg, and tells the true story of her mother, Lisa Jura, who was a young Jewish musician whose dreams were interrupted by the Nazi regime.

In the show, Golabek performs pieces from Bach, Beethoven, Chopin and Rachmaninoff, as she shares her mother’s true story of survival. The performance is adapted and directed by Hershey Felder.

Golabek, an American concert pianist, has appeared at the Hollywood Bowl, The Kennedy Center and Royal Festival Hall. She has been the subject of several documentaries, including Concerto for Mona with conductor Zubin Mehta. Her recordings include Carnival of the Animals and Ravel’s Mother Goose Suite featuring Meryl Streep, both recorded with Golabek’s sister, Renee Golabek-Kaye.

Golabeck founded Hold On To Your Music, a foundation devoted to spreading the message of the power of music. With the help of the Milken Family Foundation, Facing History and Ourselves, and the Annenberg Foundation, she created educational resources which, with her book, have been adopted into school curricula across America.

The performance is part of the SAC Presents performing arts series, presented by the School of Arts & Communication in OSU’s College of Liberal Arts. The goal of the series is to bring well-known headliners, rising stars and unique, lesser known artists and performances to the community.

The show will be held in the LaSells Stewart Center, 875 S.W. 26^th St., Corvallis. Tickets are $35 and $45 in advance and $40 and $50 at the door. They can be purchased online at http://liberalarts.oregonstate.edu/school-arts-and-communication-presents. 

OSU students will be admitted for free with their ID card and may pick up a reserved ticket in advance in 309A Fairbanks Hall. Corvallis Arts for All discounts apply; SNAP participants with an Oregon Trail Card may purchase up to two tickets for $5 each at the door. For more information, call 541-737-5592.

SAC Presents is partnering with OSU KidSpirit to offer child care in Langton Hall during performances, through their Parent’s Night Out program. Children must be 3 or older and fully potty-trained. Advance registration is required for child care. More information, including reservation and pricing details, are available online at liberalarts.oregonstate.edu/SACpresents.

Beginning at 6 p.m., food, beer and wine and non-alcoholic beverages are available for purchase from Valley Catering in the lobby of the Lasells Stewart Center.. Food and beverages are also allowed in the Austin Auditorium. 

SAC Presents is funded in part by donations made during the Cornerstone Campaign for the Arts and by OSU Friends of the Arts.