STAGE REVIEW

South Coast Repertory has transformed the time-encrusted mythology of “A Christmas Carol” into a sprightly, well-turned comedy with an Ebenezer Scrooge who doesn’t have a mean bone in his body.

Scrooge is a penny-pinching grumbler, of course. And virtually everybody on stage either says he’s a meanie or treats him like one. But we don’t believe it for a minute. We’re not meant to. Not in this version. For no matter how bony Scrooge’s face, how chilly his words, how miserly his deeds, Scrooge is a comic. This news should come as no surprise to SCR regulars. Hal Landon Jr. has played him this way every year since 1980, and John-David Keller has directed the show for as many silly laughs as it can get.

The result happens to be highly entertaining, especially for a family audience. But it is not Dickens. It misses the pathos of the story and its emotional impact. Furthermore, while Jerry Patch’s adaptation conveys the basic message that kindness and charity are to be valued, the moral of the story is dangerously oversimplified.

Every kid in the audience, and probably some parents, may well be persuaded that the inverse of the moral is true. By play’s end, Scrooge discovers that money is the root of all good, as long as he gives it away. Money buys love. Money buys happiness. Money, more than generosity, remains his form of salvation.

However, there can be no faulting the production for its liveliness, freshness and technical polish. It moves swiftly, yet without sacrificing too much detail. The acting is crisp and particular. Party scenes are radiant, with minor roles filled out beautifully. The music is warm, the costumes authentic. And the special effects, while vivid, are not overplayed.

Above all, this “Christmas Carol” has the great virtue of not being boring, which cannot be said for many cultural rites of passage. It certainly works as a first taste of theater and may whet a child’s appetite for the real Dickens.

At 655 Town Center Drive in Costa Mesa, Tuesdays through Saturdays, 7:30 p.m. with matinees Saturdays at 2:30 and Sundays at noon and 4 p.m. Performances Dec. 19 and 21 will be at 2:30 p.m. Ends Dec. 24. Tickets: $20-$22, less for children younger than 12; (714) 957-4033.