In her title role as the dog Sylvia, Valerie Haugen shifts gracefully from wistful, to defiant, to exuberantly amorous. Her spunky Sylvia loves with abandon, all-the-while alert to threats to her survival and comfort, or simply the status quo in which she has found a safe niche.
In the role of Greg (Sylvia's increasingly obsessed champion) Richard Lyon gives a sensitive performance as a wonderfully kind and caring middle-aged man who no longer feels needed. Bonnie Cobb is equally sympathetic as Greg's wife, Kate, an energetic lady finding a new self, teaching in an inner-city school but fearing her husband is slipping away from the marriage.The play evokes an egaging assortment of responses: laughter at the animal antics; empathy for the empty nesters; awe of the dog's insatiable thirst for love; the mental stimulation of exploring love across the species lines; plus a daring speculation on the fluidity of gender boundaries.
"Sylvia" is an intriguing reflection on the limitations and possibilities of what director Lon Winston calls "the need for communications, unconditional love, the need for connections."Winston posits an interesting theory on why Gurney has the three supporting roles played by a single actor: Tom (a fellow dog owner) is Greg and Kate's present life; Phyllis (Kate's college friend) is their past; Leslie (a unique psychiatrist) shows them the shape of their future."
In this highly demanding triple role, Phill Gerdel admirably meets the challenge of switching from Tom, a macho-style guy with some surprising insights, to the slapstick Phyllis, to the enigmatic Leslie.A script in which an actress plays a dog and an actor takes on a trio of distinctive roles requires savvy direction, which is what this production has in Lon Winston. A quality production in every way - from the cleverness of Sylvia's costumes to the timely inclusion of the music which lends a lilt to the unfolding action.