‘Gila’ Examines Morality of Animal Research Tests

Do human rights apply when the being in question isn’t human, but sentient nonetheless? In its West Coast premiere at the Odyssey Theatre, Mark Medoff’s thoughtful, issue-oriented “Gila” poses new moral dilemmas about animal testing in medical research.

The animal in question is Graham (Garon Michael), a gorilla who has mastered a 400-word sign language vocabulary. He’s caught between laboratory director Dr. Avrum Belasco (Andrew Prine), who wants to infect him to develop an AIDS vaccine, and Graham’s mentor, deaf linguist-anthropologist Esther Leeper (Phyllis Frelich), who has hidden the gorilla in the New Mexico desert. Dr. Belasco has tracked them down and, with the help of Allison (Heather Tom), a sign interpreter with a troubled past, tries to convince Esther to return him.

Muddying their objectivity is the fact that Avrum and Esther are former lovers who can’t separate their positions from their feelings about ending their affair. And Tom’s poignant Allison has issues involving AIDS infection that propel her from passive interpretation to extreme intervention in what becomes a life-and-death struggle.

Powerful performances from all, combined with Andrew Shea’s taut staging, add slam to the issues. The play is not without some deck-stacking, however. Portraying Graham with an uncostumed human actor inherently amplifies our sympathy, and Belasco’s sinister side at times borders on mustache-twirling. A stronger case can be made for sacrificing lab animals in the interest of saving lives than is made here.

Medoff (“Children of a Lesser God”) is one of the rare playwrights to recognize the rich emotional expressiveness of sign language, using it as passionate counterpoint to abstract ideas--a quality often lacking in spoken dialogue.

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* “Gila,” Odyssey Theatre, 2055 S. Sepulveda Blvd., West Los Angeles. Wednesdays-Saturdays, 8 p.m.; Sundays, 7 p.m. except Oct. 4 and 18, 2 p.m. Ends Nov. 1. $18.50-$22.50. (310) 477-2055. Running time: 2 hours, 5 minutes.