THEATER REVIEW : Engaging Characters in Small-Town Texas : The two one-act plays take place in a place like Mayberry, but with longnecks and armadillos.

Using the “backstage” theater as a space for small-scale productions is working out well for the Santa Paula Theater Center. Currently playing are a pair of one-act works by James McLure that are a delight.

Both take place in the small town of Maynard, Tex.--think of Mayberry, only with longnecks and armadillos--about 20 years ago. Though the stories are separate and not interdependent, the characters are related: husbands of two of the three women in the opening “Laundry and Bourbon” show up in the post-intermission “Lone Star.”

They’re all recognizable types: small-town, blue-collar people trying to survive with no hope of escape from their surroundings. Three female friends discuss life (men and children, especially) while drinking bourbon and Coke and folding laundry; later, three men confront a major problem that has arisen between two of them. “Laundry and Bourbon” is sensitive and heartwarming; “Lone Star” is out-and-out, often sidesplittingly, funny.

The central figures are Elizabeth and Roy, who are, it seems, happily enough married. Though he’s somewhat of a philanderer, she stoically accepts his conduct as the nature of a man. Her best friend, Hattie, is flamboyant and chatty, and quite a gossip. The third woman in “Laundry and Bourbon,” Amy Lee, is a social climber who married an appliance store owner and has joined the local country club. Amy Lee’s disdain of Hattie is reciprocal. While Elizabeth remains nonpartisan on the surface, she probably sympathizes with Hattie.

Out behind Angel’s Bar, Vietnam vet Roy is snockered and letting off some steam as his younger brother, Ray, looks on. It develops that Cletis (Amy Lee’s husband, not that it matters) has done something that is bound to infuriate Roy, who already holds him in contempt. Cletis figures this latest incident may provoke Roy to manslaughter, and asks Ray to help him out of his predicament.

Both plays depend more on character than plot, though, and both give the actors much to work with. And everyone makes the most of the material and opportunity for characterization under the confident direction of Brenda Kenworthy (“Laundry”) and Linda Livingston (“Lone Star”).

Hattie is the most flamboyant character in “Laundry and Bourbon,” and Sandy Katzel portrays her memorably (maybe you’ll remember Gilda Radner as the somewhat confused Emily Litella). Julie Billingsly is fine as Amy Lee, putting on what airs she can, and Stephanie Lowe holds the play’s center as Elizabeth.

Out behind the bar, Seth Blackburn verges on dangerous as Roy--there’s a gleam in his eye that shows why Cletis fears his wrath. Karl Mickelson is appealing as Roy’s younger and slower brother; the actor brings heart to the part. Larry Wright is onstage somewhat less as Cletis, but manages to convey why his character is (marginally) more successful than the others.

There’s some raw language in “Lone Star,” and sexual references that some might find upsetting, which is why the play isn’t considered appropriate for children. For those who enjoy earthy humor, the plays are recommended. For those who don’t, the Theater Center will be presenting Oscar Wilde’s “The Ideal Husband” next month.

Details

* WHAT: “Lone Star” and “Laundry and Bourbon.”

* WHEN: Friday and Saturday evenings at 8 through April 30; no performance this Friday.

* WHERE: Santa Paula Theater Center, 125 S. 7th St., Santa Paula.

* HOW MUCH: $7.50 general admission, $5 seniors.

* FYI: For reservations or further information, call 525-4645.