THEATER : It’s Men’s Turn to Shine in Timely ‘Enemy’

Don’t tell Alicia Millikan that her theater group is a woman’s company.

“I don’t know where that comes from,” says Millikan, who is executive director of Singular Productions. “What we do is ensemble theatrical plays.”

Of course, it is true that the three people who run Singular--Millikan, Sharon Hallett and Allison Liddi--are women. And it is true that many of their productions--including 1993’s “Female Transport” and this year’s “Dancing at Lughnasa--have heavily featured the fairer sex.

But that all ends with their newest venture, Arthur Miller’s 1950 adaptation of Henrik Ibsen’s “An Enemy of the People,” opening Saturday at Ivy Substation.

“This play is about the men,” Millikan says firmly. “I’m so pleased we’re doing a piece that allows the men to do great work--stuff the women in our company have been doing.”

The 15-character drama, set in 1905 Norway, examines social responsibility in the story of Dr. Thomas Stockmann, who discovers that the local water supply has been contaminated, then is baffled when the town’s leaders reject his claims and eventually ostracize him.

“It’s an exciting play, and it’s timely,” says director Jodi Binstock, who staged an acclaimed revival of “The Zoo Story” at the Actor’s Workout Studio last year. “And it’s an American classic. This play is very much Arthur Miller; I think he and Ibsen would have been good friends.”

Millikan, who is producing with Hallett, had never seen “Enemy” done, but remembered hearing of a landmark production at Los Angeles Actors Theatre in 1980--the last time the drama was mounted locally.

“To me, the play was incredibly accessible,” says Millikan, who joined Singular Productions in its maiden voyage--a staging of “Cloud Nine”--in 1989. “I remember reading Ibsen’s version a long time ago: He goes on and on, it’s very political and literary, but not very actable.

“When I read the Miller, I said, ‘I can hear people saying these words.’ Everything Miller said is truer now.”

“Enemy” is the second entry in Singular Productions’ second season at Ivy Substation, a restored former railroad station in Culver City.

“Theater is definitely not a money-maker,” Millikan says. “But we educated ourselves about who was who in Culver City, joined the Chamber of Commerce. We’ve received tremendous support from the city in a very short amount of time.”

Their first event was a fund-raiser in October, 1993, at which the company announced its 1994 season. “That was great,” Millikan says. “It was a way to say in a big, loud voice, ‘We’re here!’ ”

“An Enemy of the People” opens Saturday, playing Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 p.m. at Ivy Substation, 9070 Venice Blvd. in Culver City. Sign-language performances will be July 21 and 28. Closes Aug. 26. Prices: $17 general admission; $12 students and senior citizens. (310) 558-1555. TDD: (213) 661-7562.