‘JEWEL TREE’: CHILDREN ADD MISSING FACET

As theater, “The Jewel Tree” doesn’t shine at the Century City Playhouse, but as an active participatory experience for small children, it offers a sparkle.

In the Burbage Theatre for Children production, a little farm girl (played winningly by Nancy Sears) grows a very special tree in her beloved garden. Her mean father’s avarice is awakened when he sees the tree’s unusual fruit of precious stones, but the tree only grows its jewels for his daughter.

Sneakily, the father seeks to remedy that situation.

The children in the audience are involved every step of the way--the action begins outside the theater where Sears has them join her in imaginary games, interrupted by her father (played cartoonishly by Ivan Spiegel), who yells at her to get to her chores.

Inside, the only way to see the show is sitting on the floor, up close. Otherwise, the feeling of being a part of things is lost, and the lack of props and sets becomes further distancing.

Saturday’s audience had plenty of help to offer, suggesting the kind of plants the girl should grow in her garden, helping her water it and giving her imaginary seeds.

When her father wanted to uproot the jewel tree (Catherine Selfridge, in green leotard), the children called out to him to stop because the tree was afraid and to point out that if he chopped it down, it wouldn’t ever give him any jewels.

The audience members also pointed out that he was being mean and he should be nicer. They gleefully offered Sears imaginary disguises to help her trick Spiegel into returning the tree.

All ends happily, though the girl’s greedy father seems unredeemingly harsh, making his turnaround at the end a bit suspect. But the daughter’s reaction to his intimidation wasn’t wholly sympathized with on Saturday. One knowledgeable boy advised her, “You have to stand up to your dad better.”

Performances run indefinitely at 10508 W. Pico Blvd. on Saturdays at 1 p.m. (213) 839-3322.