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 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.

"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…" - NY Times.

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

Not intended for children.

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A Man for All Seasons
by Robert Bolt
Directed by Ginger Thomas
November 9-12 & 16-19, 2006
 

Garlands of awards and critical praise greeted this play in New York and London. Paul Scofield was pronounced brilliant for his portrayal of Sir Thomas More in his last years as Lord Chancellor of England during the reign of Henry VIII. When Henry fails to obtain from the Pope a divorce from Catherine of Aragon so he can marry Ann Boleyn, he rebels by requiring his subjects to sign an Act of Supremacy making him both spiritual and temporal leader of England. More can not in conscience comply. Neither Thomas Cromwell, Cardinal Wolsey nor the King himself can get a commitment from him. He resists anything heroic, wanting only to maintain his integrity and belief in silence. But this is treason, and his very silence leads him to his death.

"A Man for All Seasons is the ageless and inspiring echo of the small voice that calls to us: "To thine own self be true.'... A masterpiece." - N.Y. Journal American

"Extraordinarily lucid play.... Make[s] the human mind shine. The glare is dazzling, the experience exhilarating." - N.Y. Herald Tribune

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Amateurs
by Tom Griffin
Directed by Susan Weber
February 8-11 & 15-18, 2007
 

Following the opening night of the Timberly Troupers' musical about undertakers, Dorothy and her slightly daft husband, Charlie, host a gathering of actors and friends. The chic opening night party is in another part of town, but into Dorothy's living room comes a guest list that includes Nathan (a recently divorced high school teacher who is also a very bad ventriloquist), Wayne (better at loving than acting), Jennifer (who has a sure shot at Hollywood stardom), Ernie (one of the Troupers' actors filled with ham and spite), Irene (his out of patience wife), Mona (who was in love with Wayne but has since moved on to someone else) and Paul (a well-known drama critic and friend of Dorothy's who has just broken his rule of never reviewing community theater). When Paul has a heart attack he drops his not-yet-published review before being taken to the hospital. The actors read it and confront the harsh reality of a pan. Dorothy's sweetness and patience rise above Ernie's bitter tirade, and the others trade barbs and insults as they try to control their emotions. The party becomes the setting where the dreams, loves, failures and successes of this group are explored with bittersweet humor and the relationship between risk and need is touchingly depicte

"AMATEURS is…winsomely, wildly, wonderfully funny. So ride with the punches and enjoy the literate, charming mayhem…" - East Side Monthly.

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The Grass is Greener
by Hugh Williams & Margaret Williams
Directed by Charissa Prchal
April 12-15 & 19-22, 2007

The lord and lady of an old English estate have had to open up most of their manor to tourists in order to keep the place going. One day an American millionaire breaks off from the tourists and enters the private rooms of the manor where he meets the lady. They fall in love at first sight. The lord is momentarily helpless, and can offer no objection when his wife, after a restless weekend, announces that she is going into London for a few days. He does not want his wife to come back to him out of any sense of duty, but prefers to hold or lose her entirely. He engineers a plan that involves inviting the American to the estate for a weekend, together with the women his wife is ostensibly visiting in London. It's a bold plan, but he carries it off gaily. The evening culminates in a harmless duel, in which the lord is superficially wounded - by arrangement with his butler. The absolute seriousness of the situation shocks the lady back to her senses. The dialogue throughout sparkles with a delightful levity, and the roles are polished to a perfection of sophistication.

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The Wizard of Oz
Adapted by Frank Gabrielson, Music and Lyrics of the MGM motion picture score by Harold Arlen & E.Y. Harburg, Background Music by Herbert Stothart
Directed by Kyle Shifflett
Music Directed by Kent Taylor
July 11-15 & 18-22, 2007

Join in a journey down the Yellow Brick Road as Town and Gown Theatre presents one of the most loved musicals of all time and enjoy our production of the beloved Frank L. Baum story of Dorothy Gale, The Scarecrow, The Tin Man and The Cowardly Lion (and Toto, too!) as they travel through the land of Oz.  You’ll hear such favorite as: Over The Rainbow, Munchkinland (Ding Dong! The Witch Is Dead), If I Only Had A Brain, If I Only Had A Heart, If I Only Had The Nerve,, We're Off To See The Wizard (Follow The Yellow Brick Road), The Jitterbug, and The Merry Old Land of Oz.