For Immediate Release:Contact: David Kuehn, Executive DirectorCotuit Center for the ArtsPhone: (508) 428-0669Email: David@cotuitcenterforthearts.orgWebsite: ArtsOnTheCape.org

“33 Variations” at Cotuit Center for the Arts

Cotuit Center for the Arts presents “33 Variations,” a 2009 Tony Award-winning play by Moisés Kaufman, September 25 through October 11. Performances are Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at 8 PM and Sunday at 2 PM. The Sunday, October 5, matinee will be a benefit performance for CCftA and The A.L.S Family Charitable Foundation. Tickets for this special performance are $50.

“33 Variations,” directed by Mary Arnault, simultaneously examines the creative process behind Ludwig von Beethoven’s “Diabelli Variations” and the journey of Dr. Katherine Brandt, a musicologist, who struggles with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and her relationship with her daughter. The two stories are intertwined as the action moves from the present to 1819, 1823, and back again.

Pianist David Kuehn, Executive Director of Cotuit Center for the Arts, will play selections from the variations throughout the play, as Beethoven’s music is itself a dramatic character in the play.

“I saw the play on Broadway in 2009 with Jane Fonda in the lead,” said Kuehn. “It was such a powerful production and unique in the telling of the story. Hearing Beethoven’s ‘Diabelli Variations’ played live as another character in the play was magical. I’ve wanted to have the play produced at Cotuit since I became Executive Director, and when the rights finally became available last year, we jumped at the chance to present the Cape Cod premiere.”

Anton Diabelli was an Austrian music publisher and composer who, in 1819, composed a short, playful waltz and asked important composers of the time to write variations on the waltz. He would then publish the waltz and variations. Fifty-one composers responded. At first reluctant to participate, Beethoven eventually wrote 33 variations on Diabelli’s simple waltz by 1823. His “Diabelli Variations” is considered one of his finest works for piano.

In the play, the fictional character of Katherine Brandt seeks to discover why Beethoven felt compelled to write so many variations on Diabelli’s unassuming theme, which was disparaged by some as mediocre, “a cobbler’s patch.” At the same time, she is dealing with her own deteriorating health—as Beethoven faces a multitude of medical problems of his own—and her ups and downs in her relationship with her daughter.

“It is a beautifully written play, part comedy, part tragedy,” said director Mary Arnault. “I love the way Kaufman breaks the fourth wall and bends time—there are no rules. Katherine and Beethoven are in and out of each other’s spaces. At one point, one character from the contemporary story walks

right into the 1823 story, picks up a prop from someone’s hand and carries it back. It’s beautiful, like quantum physics onstage.”

But the play goes deeper than a musicologist’s search for answers. “The essence of the play is about transfiguration,” said Arnault, “of characters, their relationships, their perspectives of each other, and even their perspectives of the music. Beethoven’s music is the link that weaves it all together. Kaufman was brilliant to place the pianist right there on stage, playing all the variations.”

“I’ve been a student of classical music most of my life,” said Kuehn. “Digging into Beethoven’s masterpiece has been a joy and a challenge. Every note has a purpose, just as every word and nuance in the play is important. I am so looking forward to realizing this dream and sharing our production with the public.”

Susan Winslow will play Katherine Brandt. “She was already breathing the role when she walked into the audition,” said Arnault. “She is passionate about the role.”

Richard Martin is Beethoven. “He just grabbed the role, and he is fantastic,” said Arnault. “He and David perform a beautiful duet with the fugue variation. As Beethoven creates the piece, he calls out instructions, when to bring it down, when to crescendo, when to hit those theme notes. David is doing the work, but, when you are watching the scene, it really does seem as though the music is emanating from Beethoven himself, from Richard. He has to know the music intimately to create that illusion.”

Jamie Lynne Stuart is Katharine’s daughter Clara Brandt, who becomes the caregiver for her mother. Danny Price is Anton Schindler, who performs the same role for Beethoven.

Linda Monchik is Gertie, Dr. Gertrude Ladenburger, the librarian at Beethoven-Haus in Bonn, where Katharine goes to research the variations. Matt Kohler is Mike Clark, Katherine’s nurse, and Michael Ernst plays Anton Diabelli.

Arnault has directed numerous shows for Cotuit, including “Red,” “The 39 Steps,” “Quills,” “How I Learned to Drive,” and “Dark of the Moon.” For Harwich Junior Theater, where she teaches, she has directed many plays, including “The Buddy Holly Story,” “Bonnie and Clyde,” and “The Giver.”

Arnault’s husband, Andy Arnault, is designing the set for the show. The couple works together frequently on theatrical productions and have written nine plays together.

“We decided to do this play a year and a half ago,” said Arnault, “and to donate a portion of the proceeds to ALS. The timing is fortuitous, with the ALS ice bucket challenge this summer, and we are pleased to help raise awareness of this disease and to contribute to the cause.

Tickets are $25, $22 for seniors, $20 for members, and $15 for students. Tickets for the benefit matinee performance on October 5 are $50.

For more information and to purchase tickets, visit artsonthecape.org or call 508-428-0669. Cotuit Center for the Arts is at 4404 Route 28 in Cotuit.

# # #

What: “33 Variations,” by Moisés Kaufman

Where: Cotuit Center for the Arts, 4404 Route 28, Cotuit

When: September 25 to October 11, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at 8 PM and Sunday at 2 PM.

Admission:$25, $22 for seniors, $20 for members, and $15 for students. $50 for October 5 benefit performance for CCftA and the A.L.S. Family Charitable Foundation.

END