About the Play:

Sylvia has long been a favourite of acting teachers for Female/Female Scenes and Female/Male Scenes.

Sylvia is a full-length comedy by A.R. Gurney. A man, his wife, his dog: the makings of a comedic emotional triangle. Greg and Kate move to Manhattan from the suburbs. Greg's career is winding down, Kate's is taking off. Greg and Sylvia, the dog, find each other in the park. Then the dependencies and jealousies develop. Sylvia is A.R. Gurney's endearing comedy about empty nests, mid-life crises, and attachments, both human and canine. Especially recommended for school and contest use.

Sylvia is a modern romantic comedy about a marriage and a dog. Middle-aged, upper-middle class Greg and Kate have moved to Manhattan after twenty-two years of child-raising in the suburbs. Greg's career as a financial trader is winding down, while Kate's career, as a public-school English teacher, is beginning to offer her more opportunities. Greg brings back to their empty nest home a dog he found in the park – or that has found him – bearing only the name "Sylvia" on her name tag. A street-smart mixture of Lab and Poodle, Sylvia becomes a major bone of contention between husband and wife. She offers Greg an escape from the frustrations of his job and the unknowns of middle age. To Kate, Sylvia becomes a rival for affection. And Sylvia thinks Kate just doesn't understand the relationship between man and dog. The marriage is put in serious jeopardy until, after a series of hilarious and touching complications, Greg and Kate learn to compromise, and Sylvia becomes a valued part of their lives.

Sylvia premiered in 1995 Off-Broadway at the Manhattan Theatre Club (MTC), with Sarah Jessica Parker in the title role, and was seen on Broadway in 2015 with Annaleigh Ashford. The play has become a favourite scene study vehicle in acting classes and workshops and is regularly performed in regional repertory, middle school, high school, college, and community theatre productions.

Cast: 2 female, 2 male

What people say:

"Dramatic literature is stuffed with memorable love scenes, but none is as immediately delicious and dizzy as the one that begins the redeeming affair in A.R. Gurney's new comedy, Sylvia…." — New York Times

"I can only call it one of the most involving, beautiful, funny, touching and profound plays I have ever seen…." — New York Daily News

"A.R. Gurney's mad comedy is the most endearing good time to trot down the pike in many a moon. Howlingly funny…." — BackStage

About the Playwright:

A.R. Gurney (1930-2017) is known as one of the most prolific and produced playwrights in America. His work focuses primarily on the issues and realities of middle-class American life and has been produced on international theatre stages for more than 50 years. He is also the author of three novels and a two-time Pulitzer Prize for Drama nominee, the recipient of the Drama Desk Award, and the Award of Merit from the Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters.