BWW Review: SYLVIA Opens Up a Dog's Mind to Reveal What Makes a Truly Loving Companion
In the 1995 comedy SYLVIA by A.R. Gurney, married couple Greg (Steve Howard revisiting the role he played with Tanna in 2011) and Kate (appropriately named Beege Barkette) are empty-nesters in the big city. In the opening scene, Greg and Sylvia arrive home after meeting in the park where Sylvia, a bouncy, frisky poodle mix, literally adopted Greg. Tanna jumps up and down, running around just as a new dog inside a home would react, her nervousness and excitement leading her to smell every single inch of the place, leave a liquid deposit, and then remind her new companion over and over again how he is her God she will love and respect forever - as long as he never hits her.
