Play Review: Sylvia

"Give a dog a woman's name and you'll begin to think of her as a woman."

Words of wisdom from one dog owner to another, this line from Buffalo-born playwright A.R. Gurney's "Sylvia" sums up a creative tale of relationships and loyalty.

This unique comedy, currently presented by Kaleidoscope Theatre Productions at the Marie Maday Theatre at Canisius College, suggests the possibility of intellectual communication between man and his "best friend."

The best friend, in this case, is a boxer named Sylvia. Dressed in saggy sweats and with a handkerchief tied around her head, Sylvia is portrayed in human form by Erin M. Sabia. Originally performed on Broadway by "Sex and the City" star Sarah Jessica Parker, Sylvia is spunky, foul-mouthed, and awfully adorable.

The genius of this concept is that she never exactly looks like a dog. Through physical and vocal creativity, Sylvia takes on the persona, if you will, of a canine. Mentally, too, she is on par with her human counterparts. Ideally, the performance should never be too human, nor too canine, but a balance of the two.

This is not always easy to detect, and it can't be easy to perform. Sylvia's spirited expressions of excitement and dismal pouts of disappointment are so palpable, even those without pets could be persuaded to like puppies. Sabia's Sylvia is cute from the moment she walks - er, crawls - onstage.

Conflict begins when Greg (Matthew F. Slazak), a down-and-out thirty-something, brings Sylvia home to his disconcerting wife Kate (Kelly Meg Brennan). His priorities shift from his marriage and troubled career, to Sylvia and their "playtime," until Kate (who refers to the dog as "Saliva") is all but displaced from his life.

Cautious chats with fellow dog-owners in the park, and a very humorous trip to the therapist, offer "guidance" for Greg's situation. The trouble (and it becomes a little infuriating after an almost two-hour first act) is that Greg doesn't understand why his wife of 10 years doesn't approve of his fondness of Sylvia.

This isn't a normal case of infidelity, as is perfectly clear right from the get-go. The relationship between man and wife is one of mutual dedication, not the same command-and-reward rule over a pet. Greg can't really be blamed, though. His feelings toward Sylvia are really only of love and companionship, not lust or desire. It is only his loneliness that drives him from Kate.

Grating and gnawing, Kate's straight-edged, disciplinarian-like temper is as sad as Greg's demise is pathetic. The two are disconnected the entire play and only when their reality is made clear to them are they mature enough to compromise.

Although the novelty of a talking, walking and yet still-barking dog offers enough ingenuity to drive this very comedic script, it is the underlying context of relational dynamics that remains the play's moral center.

As is the case with many of Gurney's plays ("The Dining Room," "The Snow Ball," "Far East"), the protagonist's struggle is explicitly stated to the audience in one way or another. In one scene, Tom (Keith A. Wharton), another dog owner, explains to Greg his mistake in selecting the name Sylvia - a woman's name - over a pet name such as Spot or Fluffy.

This scene offers a solution - and therefore direct analysis - to Greg's dilemma, thrown in very early in the first act. While it sets up a series of funny scenes between Sylvia and Kate in act two, this eliminates the possibility of a more existential, satirical approach. The reason the plays works in the first place is its absurdness. It's unfair to Greg (and the play's conclusion) to be so aware of his situation if the situation is surreal to begin with.

This, however, is only a complaint with the script, not the production.

"Sylvia" is the second play produced by Kaleidoscope, after last season's "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare [abridged]." The company is run independently from Canisius, but uses their facilities. Inside an older building on campus, the theater is a nicely transformed venue with a large thrust stage, offering intimate connection with the audience.

Three of the four professional directors of the troupe are featured in the play (Sabia, Slazak and Wharton), while the fourth (Beth A. Gerardi) is the stage director. Gerardi and Brennan are both UB graduates and Sabia is currently a graduate student in the school of pharmacy.

Brennan, a local veteran of almost every professional theater, brings very seasoned acting chops to her performance. She tends, though, to over-act once in a while, causing some unintentionally melodramatic moments. Slazak, while not as captivating as Brennan or Sabia, is convincing enough as a lost soul, but never offers any specific moments of greatness. He's sort of a dull John Ritter - if that's possible.

All in all, a cunning concept and sharp script by Gurney bring a new perspective on relationships, loyalty, and what dogs would say - if they were able - to their owners.

"Sylvia" plays at Canisius College's Marie Maday Theatre on Main Street downtown, with a buy-one-get-one-free ticket deal for students with valid identification.