Jane Fonda's Life "Variations"
On the 30-year anniversary of the near meltdown at Three Mile Island, a Pennsylvania nuclear power plant, it seems appropriate to talk to Jane Fonda, one of the stars of "The China Syndrome," the acclaimed Hollywood film, released that same year, that warned of nuclear disasters.
At 71 years old, Fonda is still pretty, energetic and as outspoken as ever. Reminded of the Three Mile Island anniversary, she questions whether nuclear power will ever be a practical source of energy in this country. After three decades, she says, "We still haven't figured out what to do with the waste, have we?" and admits she prefers other options, including solar power and retrofitting homes to make them more energy efficient.
Fonda, who lives in Atlanta, Ga., is in New York through May, starring in a play on Broadway, Moises Kaufman's "33 Variations." Fonda plays a modern-day musicologist, obsessed with solving the mystery behind the nearly three dozen variations that composer Ludwig Von Beethoven constructed out of a seemingly ordinary waltz. Fonda's role is an extremely physically and emotionally draining one: she plays a woman dying of the debilitating disease known as ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease.
She last performed on Broadway 46 years ago, and admits that during the first week of rehearsals, she found herself "wondering what she had gotten herself into." She grew comfortable in the role, and now, even with two shows a day on Wednesdays and Saturdays, Fonda says this is clearly the "best time of her life." She also says she refuses to read reviews of the play, concerned that they will affect her performance (Note: while some reviews are mixed about the play itself, Fonda is getting raves).
Fonda, who describes herself as an actor, activist, businesswoman and writer, is as busy as ever.
She is working on a book, her sixth, about aging, which will be published by Random House in 2010. Later this year, she begins work on two new films, but Fonda is most animated when talking about a program she started in Atlanta that works with under-privileged teenagers to prevent unwanted pregnancies.
"This is my cause. It comes from my gut," she says referring to her work with young teens dealing with problems of adolescence that are compounded by poverty. "Even though, again, I am privileged, I know these problems myself. And so if they were hard for me, I can't even imagine what they must be for kids that are poor and are dealing with racism, and poverty and abuse."
Then it is time for Fonda to go. After all, there is a show to do in less than three hours, and time for the only concession to her age she appears to make: a short nap before curtain time.
