HOLIDAY THEATER REVIEWS : ‘Carol’s Eve’: Suicidal Tendencies

‘Tis the season to be suicidal. That’s the provocative premise behind Pauline Lepor’s “Carol’s Eve” at the Met Theatre. But this comedy about a woman thinking about flinging herself toward the pavement is ultimately just a preachy and predictable gloss on the under-explored topic of depression.

Set on the balcony of a high-rent apartment, as a Christmas Eve party rages inside, “Carol’s Eve” takes the simple “What if?” scenario of a woman who is interrupted as she’s contemplating the great hurl downward and repeats it five times, giving Carol different partners each round.

Devora Millman gives a nuanced and believable performance as the titular bummed-out Jewish girl, but she’s backed by an uneven ensemble struggling with stereotypical roles. Most convincing are charismatic Richard Robert Redlin, who does his best with an almost unplayable part, and Alicia Silverstone as a bratty cokehead. Sturdy understudy Gene Elman, viewed at the reviewed performance, is also first-string material.

Yet director Valerie Mayhew makes an already treacly tract more saccharine and slows the pace to a crawl. She hasn’t even bothered to bridge the five disjointed interludes together in order to make them cohere as a drama.

* “Carol’s Eve,” Met Theatre, 1089 N. Oxford Ave., Hollywood. Thursdays, 8 p.m.; Saturdays, 7 & 10 p.m.; Sundays 2 & 7 p.m. Ends Jan . 9. $15. (213) 957-1152. Running time: 1 hour, 50 minutes.