Valerie Harper as former Israeli PM Golda Meir.

A fictional character named Rhoda Morgenstern and a real-life character by the name of Golda Meir might seem to have little in common.

Until you throw Valerie Harper into the mix.

The woman who first breathed life into Mary Tyler Moore's upstairs neighbour on the Mary Tyler Moore Show is about to take up residence at the Elgin Theatre, playing the one-time Israeli prime minister in a touring production of William Gibson's Golda's Balcony.

The play, directed by Scott Schwartz, opens a week-long run Tuesday.

Four-time Emmy Award-winner Harper is as surprised as anyone to find herself in this role, she says.

"I saw the show when Tova (Feldshuh, the actress who created the role in the New York production) brought it to L.A.," Harper says. "I was always very interested in Golda, and I knew Tova.

"That was in February of last year -- and then in March, the producer said: 'Would you like to do it?'

"I said, 'Send me the play,' and then, omigosh!"

Obviously, a script by Gibson (author of The Miracle Worker) won her over.

"In the '60s, I was working on his plays in acting class," she says, recalling the days in which she first became interested in the Russian-born, American-reared Meir, as well.

The story of Meir's life, as told by Gibson, was compelling, Harper felt.

"Today, it's completely relevant," she says. "(Doing the play) was very appealing -- no arm twisting at all."

Subsequent touring, since October, with the show has taught her a lot more about Meir, not the least of which was: "I was right in loving her, first of all. The personal sacrifices she made -- she was very committed to what she had decided to do, which was to make the world safer for Jews.

"This was an extraordinary combination in a human being -- a visionary with moral assurance," she says. "She saw through to the heart of the matter. When you have the vision and the activism in one person, it's quite wonderful.

"She was one of our own."

Clearly, even "our own" come in all sorts of packages and Harper knows she bares scant resemblance to the woman who ruled Israel throughout the Six Day War -- a woman once described by David Ben-Gurion as "the only man in (the Israeli) cabinet."

"I have a false nose, age make-up, grey hair and body padding," she says. "I'm not doing an impersonation. It's more a replication.

"I have listened to her tapes and done a lot of research. I've learned a lot about Jewish history."

Harper and her producer-husband have recently acquired the rights to take the play to London and then on to Israel for its premiere there, and that's where they are aiming to be early next year.

"I've turned down three pilots," Harper says, adding that she'd love to go back to TV, now that she's the right age.

"For working actresses, at 33 they stop working, and then at 60 they can start playing grannies."

For now, however, she's enjoying the view from Golda's Balcony.

"When you do theatre, you just commit to it," she says happily. "You grit your teeth and you just do it."

Think of it as Golda's rule.

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