WRONGFUL LIFE

$5.40 – $15.00

'Wrongful Life' is a somewhat imprecise legal term whereby a parent or child asserts that, had a doctor’s conduct met the required standard of care, the child would not have been born. To date, the cases brought in Australia have focused either on children born with disabilities or on failed sterilisation procedures. In the play 'Wrongful Life', Ron Elisha - a practising GP - pushes the envelope just that little bit further.

For Gina, nothing has ever come easily. Life has always been a struggle and, at 16, she has reached the conclusion that it is simply too hard. Put simply, life for Gina is not worth living. By dint of the discovery that, according to Gina’s mother (Eve), Gina was born only because Eve’s GP (Selina) talked her out of an abortion, Gina urges her mother to take out an action for Wrongful Life on her behalf against Selina. The play traces the progress of the case, layer building upon layer and irony upon irony, until each player, pushed to the limits of logical extreme, falls victim to the inexorable voraciousness of the legal process.

In a searing and searching social critique, 'Wrongful Life' seeks to examine the very meaning of life. What is it, in other words, that makes life worth living? Or not worth living. Along the way, we are treated to a savvy, blow-by-blow, behind-the-scenes expose of how 'The System' actually works. Perhaps the most telling aspect of 'Wrongful Life' is that, when the curtain finally comes down, we become aware of the fact that there are no true protagonists in this piece - only victims.

And we are forced to ask ourselves why.

APT