33 Variations: The Broadway Play About Beethoven and Jane Fonda
Quick answer: 33 Variations is a play written and directed by Moisés Kaufman. It ran on Broadway at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre in the spring of 2009, starring Jane Fonda as Dr. Katherine Brandt, a musicologist trying to understand why Beethoven wrote 33 variations on a simple waltz by Anton Diabelli. The play moves between her present-day life and Beethoven’s era, and it earned several 2009 Tony Award nominations, including Best Play.
What is 33 Variations about?
The play weaves together two stories.
In the present, Katherine Brandt, a musicologist, travels to Beethoven’s archives to study the Diabelli Variations while working through a strained relationship with her daughter.
In the past, Beethoven becomes obsessed with a modest waltz written by the publisher Anton Diabelli. He returns to it again and again, creating 33 variations that turn a simple tune into one of his greatest works.
Katherine’s question drives the play: why would a genius spend so long on something so ordinary?
Who was in 33 Variations on Broadway?
- Playwright and director: Moisés Kaufman
- Jane Fonda as Dr. Katherine Brandt, in her return to Broadway
- Zach Grenier as Ludwig van Beethoven
- Colin Hanks in his Broadway debut, which earned him a Theatre World Award
- Susan Kellermann as Dr. Gertrude Ladenburger
- Theater: Eugene O’Neill Theatre, opening March 9, 2009
Did 33 Variations win any Tony Awards?
The play earned five 2009 Tony nominations, including Best Play and Best Actress in a Play for Jane Fonda. Derek McLane won the Tony for Best Scenic Design of a Play.
What did I take from 33 Variations?
I saw the play during its Broadway run and walked home through the rain without noticing it. In my words that night, “I feel changed by it, I feel expanded and my soul deeply moved by it.”
Creativity as a channel
My favorite moment showed Beethoven out of manuscript paper, writing music on the window shutters. Zach Grenier showed what it’s like to be a “channel for God,” and I felt the surge of divine creativity inside me too.
That’s what inspiration feels like. Something larger moves through you and asks to be expressed. When you surrender to it, the results can surprise and delight you.
Two lives, one lesson
The characters from two different centuries face similar struggles, and each finds a resolution. The structure itself is a reminder that our challenges are part of a bigger human story.
Becoming a better variation
The title carries a beautiful metaphor. Beethoven took a simple theme and transformed it into a masterpiece. I wrote that our parents hope we will “become better variations of them,” taking their best notes and creating a life of our own.
You can do the same with your own life. Every day is a chance to take the theme you were given and create something new.
How can you apply the lesson of 33 Variations?
- Return to your theme. What simple idea or passion keeps calling you?
- Make one variation today. Try a new approach to an old habit or project.
- Let inspiration move through you. Make space for stillness so ideas can arrive. My Trust Meditation is one way in.
- Honor where you came from. Keep the best of your family’s gifts and add your own.
Reflection prompt
If your life were a theme with 33 variations, which variation are you living now? What would the next, more beautiful one look like?
What other inspiring films should you watch?
Explore more in my roundup of Inspiring Films for Personal Growth, including Validation, Enlighten Up! and Coraline.
Frequently asked questions
Who wrote 33 Variations?
Moisés Kaufman wrote and directed the play.
Who starred in 33 Variations on Broadway?
Jane Fonda starred as Dr. Katherine Brandt, with Zach Grenier as Beethoven and Colin Hanks and Susan Kellermann in the cast.
What are the Diabelli Variations?
A set of 33 variations Beethoven composed on a short waltz by the music publisher Anton Diabelli.
When was 33 Variations on Broadway?
It opened at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre on March 9, 2009, after previews in February, and ran through May 21, 2009.
Did 33 Variations win a Tony?
Yes. Derek McLane won the 2009 Tony for Best Scenic Design of a Play, and the play received several other nominations, including Best Play.
Make room for inspiration to flow. Get My 20-Minute Trust Meditation whenever you need a pause.
Rethnea:
Thank you so much for your kind comments about 33 Variations. As an investor in the show, it is such a joy to read positive blogs and comments all over web. Yours is exceptionally well written and heartfelt. The reviews will be out soon and I personally wish you had Ben Brantley’s job! Let’s hope he’ll like it too. Thanks again.