To Gillian On Her 37th Birthday is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 play

Play (theatre)

A play is a form of literature written by a playwright, usually consisting of scripted dialogue between characters, intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. There are rare dramatists, notably George Bernard Shaw, who have had little preference whether their plays were performed...

 by Michael Brady, published by Broadway Play Publishing Inc.

Broadway Play Publishing Inc.

Broadway Play Publishing Inc, along with Dramatists Play Service, Playscripts, Inc., and Samuel French Inc., is one of the four major New York play publishers and licensors of stage rights...

, in 1984. It was developed through the literary department of the Ensemble Studio Theatre

Ensemble Studio Theatre

The Ensemble Studio Theatre is a membership-based, developmental theatre located in New York City. It has a dual mission of nurturing individual theatre artists and developing new American plays.-Overview:...

 and M Square Entertainment and moved to Circle-In-The-Square.

To Gillian on Her 37th Birthday is a play in two acts. The time is the present. The place is the back deck and beach of David's island home. The action traces the final weekend of August.

Characters:
David- age 37, college professor temporarily retired
Rachel- age 16, David's daughter
Cindy- age 16, Rachel's friend
Paul- age 38, David's brother-in-law, married to Esther
Esther- age 39, David's sister-in-law, a psychologist, married to Paul
Kevin- age 28, female, friend of Paul and Esther, recently divorced
Gillian- age 35, David's former wife who died in a sailing accident two years prior to the events of the play, Esther's sister, Rachel's mom

David loves his wife, Gillian. Unfortunately, she died two years ago. David deals with his grief by continuing his romance with Gillian during walks with her "ghost" on the beach at night. While David lives in the past, other family problems crop up in the present in the real world. Esther and Paul come for a visit to try and help Rachel. She has lost her mother and needs her father to snap back into the real world and help her.

In 1996, it was produced as a film

To Gillian on Her 37th Birthday

To Gillian on Her 37th Birthday is a 1996 American romantic drama film directed by Michael Pressman, and starring Peter Gallagher and Claire Danes as a father and daughter struggling to come to terms with the tragic death of wife and mother Gillian . The original score was composed by James...

 by Sony Pictures and starred Peter Gallagher

Peter Gallagher

Peter Killian Gallagher is an American actor, musician and writer. Since 1980, Gallagher has played many roles in numerous Hollywood films. He starred as Sandy Cohen in the television drama series The O.C. from 2003 to 2007...

, Claire Danes

Claire Danes

Claire Catherine Danes is an American actress of television, stage and film. She has appeared in roles as diverse as Angela Chase in My So-Called Life, as Juliet in Baz Luhrmann's Romeo + Juliet, as Kate Brewster in Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, as Yvaine in Stardust and as Temple Grandin in...

, Kathy Baker

Kathy Baker

Katherine Whitton "Kathy" Baker is an American stage, film and television actress.-Career:Baker began her career at San Francisco's Magic Theatre, performing in several of Sam Shepard's plays before getting her break in an off-Broadway production of Fool for Love opposite Ed Harris...

, and Wendy Crewson

Wendy Crewson

-Life and career:Crewson was born in Hamilton, Ontario, the daughter of June Doreen and Robert Binnie Crewson. She attended Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, where she won the prestigious Lorne Greene Award for outstanding work in the theater. She then studied at the Webber Douglas Academy...

.

It was awarded the Oppenheimer Award for best play of 1983.