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Peer Reviews Sylvia Reviewed by Keith Waits Entire contents copyright © 2008, Keith Waits. All rights reserved.
Sylvia is a play designed to charm the audience with humor and insight about relationships between men, women and dogs. Greg is a man who is beginning to drift in life. Married for many years, and with the kids now grown, he is suffering from a growing indifference to both his career and his marriage when one day he brings home a stray dog named Sylvia. Although his wife, Kate, is adamantly opposed to the new addition, Sylvia becomes a part of the household, creating further conflict in the marriage.
The play's central conceit is to represent Sylvia onstage in the form of an attractive young woman, allowing the close, affectionate relationship between her and Greg to take on the connotation of infidelity, of a kind. Fortunately, Mr. Gurney does not call undue attention to this parallel in the text, mostly letting the human presence of Sylvia speak for itself. The script successfully captures the dynamic between a dog and its owner, especially the more indulgent among us, effectively mining the situation in ways both wise and funny, and the commentary on human relationships is made clear. As Sylvia, Kelly Moore bounds onto the stage with the energy appropriate to a hyperactive puppy, but also proves adept at expressing the more complicated aspects of a dog's life in a funny, observant performance. Michael Harris and Grace Poganski, as Greg and Kate, do a fine job of illustrating the troubled marriage, and although it seemed like both actors struggled to find their comic rhythm in the early scenes, they navigated their way to smoother waters as the evening continued. Tom Schulz seemed to be having great fun playing the remaining three supporting roles, with an effortless comic presence. While Sylvia is not a life-altering experience, it is certainly a fun and engaging evening of theatre. Whether you are a dog owner or not, you will recognize the truths it contains.
Sylvia Note: $1 of every ticket sale will be sent to the KY Humane Society. Posted Feb. 16, 2008
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