IN ‘TRANSITIONS’ : Youth and Soul-Baring Share the Spotlight in Backstage Theatre’s Latest Production

Think back to your last slumber party. The agendas varied, of course, but inevitably somewhere between the refrigerator raid and the practical jokes, there was “truth or dare.”

You’d huddle with your pals and whisper your most carefully guarded thoughts, spilling the beans on everything from favorite foods to darkest fears.

“Transitions,” performed and largely written by a cast of 17 youths ages 10 to 16, is a little like a slumber party without the sleeping bags. Under the direction of Hal Ralson, it provides a cozy haven for some satisfying though sanitized (there are grown-ups listening) soul-baring on many of the topics teens and preteens think about most. The show is on an open-ended run at Costa Mesa’s Backstage Theatre.

According to Ralston, “Transitions” sprang from a children’s writers workshop he led last summer for students in the Costa Mesa-based Allard Academy. Additional text was created by students in three local elementary, junior high and high schools. The result is a blend of monologues, poems, vignettes and songs that express the youths’ views on subjects that range from silly to deadly serious.

As Ralston sees it, “Transitions” gives the participants an arena in which they can express their thoughts, and theoretically those of their peers, in an untraditional way.

“There are never enough scenes for kids in this age group to do,” said Ralston, an actor, director and theater instructor for 30 years. “They’re either playing somebody much older than themselves, or they’re an elf in a fairy tale.

“These kids are at an age when they need a personal identity, and the writing has opened all kinds of doors for them. They can bring out their feelings on divorce, death, school dances, you name it. And it’s great when they all stop and listen to each other (because) they find out they’re all like each other a little bit.”

By watching this process, adult viewers may gain some insights into this perplexing age group, said Ralston, who is a father of four.

“This is the kind of show that adults can hopefully see with their children and talk to them about afterward. It’s like you sat down with a kid this age for an hour, and they would talk about these things, giggling and laughing, then whining and crying. It’s a celebration of an age that no one quite understands.”

The content of the show, which opened March 22, will vary over the course of the run as the cast revises and replaces segments, Ralston added.

Setting the tone at last Sunday’s performance was “I Like,” an upbeat musical number in which the performers list some of their favorite things (cream-colored ponies and crisp apple strudel are noticeably absent), and consequently define their personalities. There’s the egghead (charmingly deadpan Gabriel Kalomas), the pretty coeds (Sarah Warner and Michelle DuPre, two of the cast’s strongest singers), the good-looking jock (Armand Rainville) and the off-the-wall individualist (Clinton Mosley).

Later in the show, “I Am . . .” continues that theme with each cast member taking on a different label to express everything from self-absorption (“I am an only child and proud of it”) to confusion (“I am a crazy person”) capped off by Mosley’s comically gross showstopper.

Broader issues are also addressed. Cast members reflect on the death of a family member or the alienation felt by a child abandoned by her parents. Divorce is discussed from various angles: the disorientation caused by a split household, the quick maturation of a child raised by a single parent. Warner lightens the mood here with a rich girl’s wry views on her much-married mother (“we have a darned good lawyer . . . she even married him once!).

Volatile topics, such as teen sex, AIDS and drug use, are generally skirted, although the subjects of child abuse and peer pressure to use drugs are briefly addressed. Thoughts on the environment sometimes take on a preachy tone, but that’s forgivable, given what this generation has at stake.

“Transitions” balances the heavy stuff with generous servings of well-placed silliness, such as the funky “Junk Food Rap” and a skit on a preschool crush, as well as the sweetly romantic “Say I Love You,” a ballad written and well sung by Lisa Rosing.

“Transitions” is decidedly low-tech. The cast appears in street clothes, and the no-frills set is borrowed from the theater’s upcoming production of “Extremities.” A taped score, generally serviceable but distractingly gravelly in some places, backs up the musical numbers. It’s the words, not the trappings, that are meant to take center stage.

According to Backstage Theatre president Al Valleta, “Transitions,” which is recommended for ages 10 and up, is the first foray into youth theater by the fledgling company, which, after a brief stint in Irvine, opened its 45-seat theater in a Costa Mesa industrial park in February 1991.

This summer, Valleta plans to add several children’s acting classes to the theater’s curriculum of adult courses and wants to present a second youth-oriented show during the Christmas season.

What: “Transitions” presented by the Allard Players.

When: Every Sunday at 2 p.m.; indefinite run.

Where: Backstage Theatre, 1599 Superior Ave., Suite B-2, Costa Mesa.

Whereabouts: Take the Costa Mesa (55) Freeway south to Newport Boulevard. Turn right on 17th Street and left on Superior Avenue. The theater is in the front of an industrial park just past the intersection of West 16th Street.

Wherewithal: All tickets are $8.

Where to call: (714) 646-5887.