The goat or who is sylvia?

The Goat or Who is Sylvia? are two viable titles, but label one play which imagines possibilities otherwise impossible in theater. Playwright Edward Albee presents the audience with a modern work unlike any other. For the next two weeks at Manbites Dog Theater, The Goat or Who is Sylvia? will delight, surprise and horrify all at once.

The play is set in a living room with the modern decor of upper-middle-class style. Nothing is out of place, and for the first 20 minutes, the audience watches the playful banter of a happily married couple. The husband, Martin (Derrick Ivey), a world-renowned architect, has a not-quite-there air about him. Combine the actor with Edward Albee's clever writing, and poof: humor sets the tone for the show.

Yet Albee, who revels in shocking his audience, does not allow his play to comfortably settle in as a domestic comedy. The absurd quickly surfaces, launching the audience onto that fine line between comedy and tragedy as Martin's horrible and unbelievable infidelity is revealed.

Throw in a too-perfect wife, a gay son and a misogynistic but caring best friend, and Albee supplies more than enough fuel for the fire in this 100-minute, one-act play.

Director Joseph Megel craftily fuses these characters into a loving but troubled family. Derrick Ivey is perfectly cast as the successful ideal husband who has frightening secrets brewing under the surface. Not taking the insanity too far, Ivey keeps his character within relatable emotional territory. The well formulated subtlety of his performance makes the absurdity even more jarring. Elisabeth Lewis Corley, who plays his wife Stevie, is the weaker of the two leading roles, and has trouble treating the shock-related mania of the latter half of the play.

Albee's writing, however, in no way makes it easy to tackle the deep-seeded troubles in family life. By taking the play into immensely disturbing territory, he leaves the audience asking questions which may or may not have answers.

The Goat or Who is Sylvia? finds itself as not only an engaging but also a truly inspired work, particularly for the active-minded theatergoer willing to grapple with the horror that may be present in any household.

The Goat or Who Is Sylvia? plays at Manbites Dog Theater, 703 Foster St. in Durham, Thursday to Sunday, Nov. 9-12, and Wednesday to Saturday Nov. 15-18. Shows begin at 8:15 p.m., except Sunday, Nov. 5 at 3:15 p.m. and Sunday Nov. 12 at 7:15 p.m. Tickets are $15 Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays and $10 Wednesdays and Thursdays.?