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 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.

Bobby Theodore is a Toronto-based screenwriter, playwright, dramaturg, and translator. After graduating from the National Theatre School of Canada’s playwriting section in 1998, he was a finalist for the Governor General’s Literary Award in 2000 for his translation of 15 Seconds by François Archambault. Since then, Bobby has gone on to translate over twenty-five plays from French to English. His most recent translations include The Just by Albert Camus and The Law of Gravity by Olivier Sylvestre.

"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."

"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."

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

"The Law of Gravity makes me want to write a manifesto. I want to leave a copy of the play in every classroom, staff room, and bathroom of every high school in every city, not-the-city, and way-too-far from-the-city."