Battle for Emotional Survival : Stage: Although set in Manhattan, ‘I-Land,’ at Burbank’s Road Theatre, includes many characters drawn from the author’s experiences in L.A.

The natives are restless.

Eliot and Randee and Trent and Ursula and Lana and Bambi and Ludwig and Sheila and Dr. Tannenbaum--and the rest of the gang--lead a modern-day battle for emotional survival in “I-Land,” newly opened at the Road Theatre in Burbank.

Adapted by Joan Foley and Gino Cabanas from Sonia Pilcer’s 1987 novel of the same name, the 17-character piece tells the overlapping tales of a group of lost souls struggling to connect on the “I-land” of Manhattan.

“Although it’s set in New York, many of the characters are based on people I knew in L.A.,” said Pilcer, a New York native who has also written two sitcoms and co-authored an as-yet-unfilmed screenplay with Garry Marshall. “For instance, the character of Lana Lamarr is based on the roommate of a guy I was dating here--this incredibly beautiful transvestite. In New York, you don’t meet people like that--at least I don’t.”

Pilcer was initially responsible for “I-Land’s” transition from literature to theater. Frustrated with publisher Ballantine’s meager publicity campaign, she struck a deal with a few bookstores: If they’d feature the book in their windows, in front of them, she and a few friends would perform monologues from the novel. Director Seth Gordon caught one of those street performances and brought the piece to the attention of New York’s 13th Street Repertory Theatre. Pilcer’s adaptation of her work bowed at the theater in 1989--where it’s still running.

In the new adaptation, the novel’s full roster of characters--17--replaces Pilcer’s pared-down cast of 11; also, her long, uninterrupted monologues have been refashioned as a series of shorter, intercut sequences. Yet, the author swears that she’s unfazed by the changes. “You put work like this out in the world, and you want things to happen to it,” she said philosophically. “Joan is obviously very sincere in her interest, and trying to capture the spirit of the book. And it’s pleasing to me that it can mean different things to different people.”

Foley, who’s also the assistant director and playing one of the roles, was introduced to the material by producer Alex Rossu, who had seen the New York staging. “I read it and loved it, and could immediately see how we could adapt it,” said the actress, a Road Company founding member. “First, the group sat down and read the entire novel aloud, which took several hours. Then I did a first rough cut, cutting a lot of stuff that didn’t move the story along. A book is a book, you know; it’s literate. And a lot of literate things don’t translate well to the stage.”

As company members improvised on the motley assortment of characters, Foley kept “cutting and reducing: ‘Are we clear on this?’ ‘Have we said this enough?’ From the start, you need to know each character and what their problem is. There are so many subtleties; even now, it’s not set.” Last week, facing the opening, Foley reluctantly realized it was time to stop fussing and fixing. “I need to take the red pencil out of my hands,” said she firmly, “put it on the table, and walk away.”

Foley has only fond feelings for her character, Randee, whose impending marriage to Eliot is the tenuous throughline that connects the disparate characters.

“Randee is an ex-hippie, but not as dated as that,” she explained. “She’s a bohemian, an artist, a romantic, her head in the clouds. Unfortunately, she’s gotten caught up in the greed-and-accumulation emphasis of the ‘80s, and is now finding the realities of her life--the biological clock, making a living, settling down--pounding very strongly inside her. Deep down, I think she’s heartbroken she has to make this choice. She’s having to settle--financially, spiritually, emotionally--because she cannot be single, be alone anymore.”

Foley, who played a hooker in the Road’s maiden production of “Balm in Gilead” last year and the mother of a rape-murder victim in its recent “In the Name of the People,” concedes that the grittier aspects of this piece--which includes lots of graphic language and sexual situations--are best suited to an adult audience. “We’re a company that wants to be socially connected, make a positive statement,” she said. “So we promote safe sex in the show. And we got a donation of 2,500 condoms from the Los Angeles County STD (Sexually Transmitted Diseases) Program; they’re in a fishbowl in the lobby.”

“I-Land” plays at 8 p.m. Thursdays through Sundays at the Road Theatre, 10741 Sherman Way, No. 8 in Burbank, through June 20. Admission: $10 to $12.50. Call (818) 503-7792.

Janice Arkatov is a regular contributor to Calendar.