Why David Birney Whips Up ‘A Christmas Pudding’

David Birney is best known for his roles in the TV series “St. Elsewhere,” “Serpico”and “Bridget Loves Bernie,” which co-starred his ex-wife Meredith Baxter. The 61-year-old classically trained actor is also a veteran of the American stage, where his credits include starring roles at the American Shakespeare Festival and in Broadway productions of “Amadeus” and “Man and Superman.”

Birney, who lives in Santa Monica, has served on the Theatre Panel of the National Endowment for the Arts and is a longtime activist for children’s health and welfare issues.

Tonight, he will direct and perform with Charles Cioffi, Rebecca Street and David Selby in the sixth annual “A Christmas Pudding” at Westwood Presbyterian Church. Funds raised from the performance will be donated to the charity People Assisting the Homeless.

Question: Tell me about “A Christmas Pudding.”

Answer: It’s an activity that started as a lark and sort of turned out to be something quite substantial. It’s like one of those Dickensian puddings with surprises and unexpected events. The music is a mix of English and French carols, Latin processionals and some solos. There’s a concert organist who will play a few Bach pieces. And there’s a group of readers doing all sorts of material--Shakespeare, Mark Twain, Frank McCourt, as well as poems by John Updike, Diane Ackerman and Ogden Nash.

Q: What are you trying to accomplish with the show?

A: During this time of year, people are shopping and working, busily trying to prepare for Christmas. At the show, everything stops. It produces a real sense of community. It touches old feelings that speak to an awareness of the real spirit of Christmas.

When you hear the Dickens transformation of Scrooge or Dylan Thomas’ memory of Christmas as a young boy, it touches that great tradition. And whatever your belief level is, you have a sense for a short period of time that people can be together in a kindly and celebratory way, in a way that we might be at all times of the year.

Q: Is there an effect you want to create by combining classical and modern pieces?

A: There’s an awful lot of awful stuff written about Christmas, but there are only a few great pieces and some great music. And when you hear those pieces bang up against each other, they resonate and they roll out into the house, and they share with people what great minds and great artists have had to say about this holiday.

Q: What other charitable causes are you involved with?

A: I get tapped for various things, and there are some causes that are quite appealing. I was the co-chair of the American Diabetes Assn. for five years. I just did some Salvation Army spots. They were a great pleasure to do. There are a variety of ways you can make a contribution, and I think that’s important.

Q: What else are you doing these days?

A: I just closed in a production back East of Eugene O’Neill’s “A Moon for the Misbegotten” in the Berkshires, which are sort of a country version of New York. In the spring, I have an adaptation of Mark Twain’s “The Diaries of Adam and Eve.” I’m also dealing with a performance arts endowment for Dartmouth College.

Q: Do you prefer working on television or on stage?

A: They’re both different. The great thing about theater is more likely than not you get the “A” material--really great writers. Television is wonderful because it touches so many people, so many lives. Theater has a different sense of community, though, because you work so long on the same piece. But there have been some extraordinary television experiences. In series work, the hours are long and brutal, but if you get a good group of people, it can be a joy to work on.

Q: Are you concerned that the arts will suffer under the George W. Bush administration?

A: I think there will be a mentality about arts in his administration that would not promote a friendly environment. Anybody who understands performing arts knows that it’s an event that’s cobbled together each night. It’s labor-intensive, and most of the people working in it are doing it for very little money.

I think it was Kennedy who said the measure of the greatness of a nation is not necessarily its geopolitical achievements but rather its contributions to the human soul. And that contribution is made at least on one level by the arts. I think they’re absolutely central to our civilization.

* “A Christmas Pudding” will be performed tonight at 7, at Westwood Presbyterian Church, 10822 Wilshire Blvd. Tickets are $15 at the door. For more information, call (310) 474-4535.