The Law of Gravity

Dom has had a rough go of things so far. At fourteen, he has the hardened look of someone who’s had to fight for everything.

Fred has just moved to Not-The-City, a new place to try to disappear. But he didn’t expect to actually make friends. He just hopes he’s accepted for how he looks.

When Dom and Fred meet on a hill overlooking a bridge that connects Not-The-City to The City, a place where anyone can be anything they want, the two find a refuge in one another and make a pact: they’ll cross the bridge at the end of the school year. They’ll be free. What could happen by then? Who will they be? And will the bridge even let them cross?

AUTHOR

Olivier Sylvestre

Author and translator Olivier Sylvestre holds a bachelor’s degree in criminology and a diploma in playwriting. He has published the novels noms fictifs and le désert, and two plays, La loi de la gravité and Guide d’éducation sexuelle pour le nouveau millénaire. La loi de la gravité has been translated into German and won the ARTCENA Creation Assistance Award (France) and the Coburger Autorenforum Award (Germany). Olivier also works as a writing instructor and dramaturg. He lives in Montréal.

AUTHOR

Bobby Theodore

Bobby Theodore lives in Montreal and is a graduate of the National Theatre School of Canada’s playwriting program. His first translation, François Archambault’s 15 Seconds, was produced across Canada and earned him a nomination for the Governor General’s Award for Literary Translation in 2000. Since then, he has gone on to translate more than 12 plays, including the works of some of Quebec’s most talented playwrights, such as Genevieve Billette and Nathalie Boisvert.

Reviews

“Brimming with empathy for its characters, this rhythmic and lyrical work rings true to the reality of young people.”

– Siegfried Forster, Radio France Internationale

“This play needs to get into as many people’s hands as possible. Olivier Sylvestre not only offers up a story about a search for identity and sexuality, but about a powerful friendship, too. At an age where everything is changing so fast, Dom and Fred strive to find a way to be truly authentic in a world where being normal is equal to death.”

– Rose Carine Henriquez, Le Devoir

“With striking simplicity, The Law of Gravity paints a portrait of two young teens in search of an identity that’s beyond gender and accepted norms. This little gem really shines.”

– L’oeil D’Olivier