Jane Fonda:
I coveted the iconic shag (and it’s “cool”) in Klute. Those exercise videos propelled me into a decade of aerobics classes. I relished her hard bitten turn in The Morning After. But, I’ve never been up close to Jane until Sunday on Broadway.
Fonda stars (at age 71 and she looks terrific) in 33 Variations. She plays Dr. Katherine Brandt, a musicologist with ALS, who seeks to unlock the mystery of Beethoven’s preoccupation with a simple waltz. The play is written and directed by Moises Kaufman (he wrote The Laramie Project and directed I am My Own Wife.) Colin Hanks (son of Tom) is one of the stars; what a natural and quite charming (check out his role as almost hip priest in Madmen). The set design is inventive and powerful.
After Kate Winslet’s season full of emoting, the grace of Jane’s performance snuck up on me. Her characterization of Dr. Brandt was regal, impassive and obstinate. There were no cheap tears or short cuts. The heartfelt applause she received at the end was a testament to a job, once more, well done.
