O.C. THEATER : Alternative Repertory Conjures Up ‘A Christmas Memory’ Real as Life

Most theater in Orange County, like most theater anywhere, is based on the art of illusion. The players make the audience believe, to a greater or lesser degree, that what it is seeing on stage is somehow real. This holds true across the entire theatrical spectrum, from William Shakespeare to Neil Simon.

Such an illusional art almost always requires the technical support of scene designers and costume-makers, lighting engineers and sound technicians. And yet this conspiracy of make-believe need not depend on anything more elaborate than a bare space to succeed, so long as the players are able to transform mere words and gestures into feeling. It takes a certain talent for that, of course, but also a conviction that transmutes emotion into art.

Until now, the Alternative Repertory Theatre has had a struggle to achieve this sort of effect. The storefront troupe time and again has conjured an atmosphere of make-believe only to fall short of a more solid result. Valiant players have pretended with all their might, as though effort could substitute for conviction.

But it is a pleasure at last to report that ART has come into its own, with a staged reading of Truman Capote’s “A Christmas Memory.” This graceful, intimate offering rings as true as life itself and ought not to be missed. Beautifully played on an empty stage by Barbara Sorenson and Lee Clark, it caps a heartfelt evening of Christmas tales.

The duo’s performance also represents a giant stride toward maturity for a 2 1/2-year-old company still learning to balance artistic strengths against weaknesses in a tiny playing space where false notes are magnified and easily detected. Under Joel T. Cotter’s skillful direction, Sorenson and Clark take us straight to a country kitchen in the rural South without need of anything except their own delicate and unadorned acting.

They draw us into Capote’s reminiscence about his boyhood friendship with a cousin in her 60s no less imaginatively than a full-blown production could. Theirs is make-believe of a high order, so richly textured and vivid that you forget they are merely enacting a narrative. You can taste the whiskey-laced fruitcakes that Capote’s cousin makes for Christmas, and feel the tug of that “lost pair of kites hurrying toward heaven.”

As a prelude to “A Christmas Memory,” other members of the ART ensemble--garbed in sweaters and scarfs and seated on stools--read a nicely paced selection of five other seasonal stories ranging from the traditional (Charles Dickens and O. Henry) to the offbeat (Jonathan Winters and Steve Martin). The anthology is amusing, unpretentious and imbued with warmth.

That ART regards this presentation of readings as a casual production, not to be rated alongside its more ambitious efforts, is understandable. However, the care that has gone into this charming evening is evident, and the payoff large.

“A CHRISTMAS MEMORY” AND OTHER TALES OF CHRISTMAS’

A production of the Alternative Repertory Theatre. Staged readings of stories by Truman Capote, Charles Dickens, Jonathan Winters, Clement Clarke Moore, O. Henry and Steve Martin. Directed by Joel T. Cotter. With Barbara Sorenson, Lee Clark, Amy Larson, David C. Palmer, Michele Roberge, Gary Christensen and Irene Turner. Through Dec. 24 at 1636 S. Grand Ave., Santa Ana. Performances Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m.; Sunday at 5 p.m. Admission: Pay what you can, or bring a new unwrapped toy or non-perishable food. Toys will be donated to the Orangewood Children’s Home, food to Santa Ana’s Holiday Hope. (714) 836-7929.