Last chance: moving one-woman show about Jewish centenarian closes tomorrow
Ashes and Diamonds is true story of Holocaust survivor Tosia who donated her Chanel bag to the V&A
When Ronnie Rosenberg’s mother died, she left strict instructions. Her daughter was to ensure that her Chanel suit was to be given to the V&A museum. Ronnie kept her promise to her mother and, when the museum asked for some details about the suit’s owner, Ronnie started to think what she should say about her mother.
“I wanted to show the depth and essence of my mother. To show that she may have ended up living the life of a wealthy woman, but that was not representative of the woman she really was. There was so much more to her. That she had experienced a remarkable life – one that shaped my whole family.” Ronnie explains.
And it was then that Ronnie realised what an exceptional woman her mother had been. As she shared her thoughts with her good friend, multi-award-winning playwright Gail Louw, Gail asked Ronnie to allow her to turn her mother Tosia’s story into a play.
And now Ashes and Diamonds is that play. A beautiful, thoughtful and searingly honest play, that is being staged at the White Bear Theatre.
Tosia is at the end of life, her family is gathered around her, but this is not a sad, maudlin, play, it is a chance to enjoy beautiful storytelling and a script that is honed to perfection, and makes this a performance that is not to be missed
A one-woman show, and a tour de force from octogenarian actor Elizabeth Counsell, the hour-long performance is the true story of Tosia’s life that spanned over ten decades. It’s a fascinating tale of how this Jewish woman, born in Poland, ended up in London and decades later bequeathing her designer clothes to a museum.
“It is true story,” said Ronnie. “And it’s a very human story. My mother, like so many people of her generation was an exceptional person, but like so many others, she had her foibles.”
Through Tosia’s story the audience is taken on a journey that starts in Poland in 1920 and ends in London in 2022. But the play is more than just Tosia’s story. Its themes include the impact of the Holocaust on the children of survivors and how family dynamics can play out across the generations. Sensitively written, it also emphasises how, although people may age, they need not they lose their understanding and intelligence. As a centenarian Tosia reflects on current news stories, her experiences having given her a unique insight and perception.
In a week when one reads that UK synagogues continue to be targeted and that Jewish women in London are whipped just for being Jewish, Ashes and Diamonds has a deep and powerful message about how history must not be forgotten.
Ashes and Diamonds is at White Bear Theatre 138 Kennington Park Rd, London SE11 4DJ until 16 May. whitebeartheatre.co.uk
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