The dog days of summer arrive early this year, as Rubicon Theatre Company presents a spring production of A.R. Gurney’s howlingly funny canine comedy SYLVIA, a love story about empty nesters Greg and Kate, and an irrepressible mutt named Sylvia. Written by Drama Desk, Obie and Lortel Award-winning playwright A.R. Gurney (also known for Love Letters and The Dining Room), the plot follows what happens after a man going through a midlife crisis finds a dog in Central Park and brings her home without consulting his wife.

The story of SYLVIA picks up after Greg and Kate move from the suburbs (where they have raised their children), to bustling Manhattan. Although Kate flourishes in the big city, Greg feels restless in his career and his personal life. During a walk in Central Park, Greg discovers a dog with a heart-shaped tag that reads simply “Sylvia.” Greg and Sylvia form an immediate attachment. Greg brings the perky pooch home only to find that Kate doesn’t want the additional responsibility of a dog at this stage in her life, let alone one that jumps, slobbers, chews up books and is clearly competing for Greg’s affections.

The couple agree to keep Sylvia for a few days while they figure out what to do with her, but as Greg and Sylvia return to the park and take walks around the city, Greg realizes that the relationship gives him a sense of purpose and provides him with the love and adoration he has been craving, unfettered by pretense, guile or manipulations. Kate comes to feel more and more threatened by Sylvia, and the two vie for “top dog” status in Greg’s life.

Kate and Greg see a marriage counselor, and Sylvia becomes the catalyst for the expression of pent-up frustrations and long-neglected feelings. Ultimately, Greg must choose between his wife of 22 years and his dog.