HOLIDAY STAGE REVIEWS : ‘Stories’ a Seasonal Gift Box

If the holidays are a time when people come together in warmth and love, rarely has that sense of reflective humility been better achieved than in the Pacific Theatre Ensemble’s new holiday show, “Stories of the Season.”

It is what it says: a collection of 10 stories packaged in large gift boxes, from which the audience gets to choose five. The lighting, the shimmering gift-wrap, a few expressive masks and pieces of costume are all the dressing up we see. Simplicity rejuvenates one’s sense of wonder with good humor, good will and good yarns.

Nobody knows what story is in what box, so surprise is a big part of the process. But the five actors and two hosts (Robert Alan Beuth and Robert George Harrison, who also masterminded this event and created the masks) are ready to deliver whatever pops up, and to do it with grace and wit. These stalwarts are Susan Dexter, Robert Jacobs, Stephen Sauerwein, Jennifer Taub and Mary Van Arsdel.

The audience is invited to participate in non-intrusive ways. The singing of carols and explanation of symbols fill the space between tales told. All is casual, caring, clear. The regenerative fables draw heavily on mythology, miracles and American Indian lore, and include a hilariously skewed “St. George and the Dragon.”

Coffee, tea, cookies and conversation are offered before the show; personal reminiscences of the season from each player end it.

In between lies pure gold.

* “Stories of the Season,” Pacific Theatre Ensemble, 8780 Venice Blvd., Culver City. Wednesday-Sundays, 8 p.m.; Sunday and Dec. 20, 3 p.m. Ends Dec. 23. $8.50-$15; (213) 660-8587. Running time: 1 hour, 30 minutes.