THEATER PREVIEW:

“A Feminine Ending,” now receiving its West Coast premiere at South Coast Repertory, is just what our theater needs: a bright, bouncy comedy with wit and intelligence, even if — on closer inspection — it might play more effectively as a TV sitcom.

Sarah Treem’s insightful play about a young woman’s search for career and personal triumphs is told in brief, episodic beats much like the symphony this character is yearning to compose. Should you miss this reference, each segment of the play is identified briefly on a musical scale just above the action.

The stage is bare, but scenic designer Tony Cisek has set pieces emerging from behind the back wall or the wings (although playgoers must imagine the car for themselves). It’s just enough background for effect.

Treem’s treatise recalls another play with a similar theme, “Crossing Delancey,” produced recently at the Newport Theatre Arts Center.

Both follow a female protagonist along the rocky road to an ultimate goal.

In this case, the central figure is Amanda, a musician who plays the oboe but dreams of becoming a famed symphony conductor, among the few such maestros of her gender.

If only life didn’t keep getting in the way in the form of lovers, beaus from the past and squabbling parents.

As she virtually carries the play, the role of Amanda is a crucial choice, and in Brooke Bloom, SCR has struck pay dirt. Bloom brings an elfin, vulnerable quality to her character, making it difficult to assert herself convincingly, which is ideal for Treem’s scenario.

Through her 90-minute journey, sans intermission, Bloom grapples with several years’ worth of adversity.

Though things start off happily enough — a romance with, and engagement to, a dashing singer (Peter Katona) on the cusp of fame — all is not well on the New Hampshire home front, and her presence is required there.

In this setting we meet Mom (Amy Aquino) and Dad (Adam Blumenfeld), rarely glimpsed in the same scene, whose 30-year marriage is crumbling. And for good measure, Amanda encounters an old flame (Jedadiah Schultz) who never got to second base with her as a teen but who now seems to be rounding third and headed for home.

Beyond Bloom’s extraordinary performance, Aquino shines brightest as the motor-mouth mother, plotting her journey to independence over her daughter’s protests.

Blumenfeld presents his case much later, and his character is endowed with an unexpected dose of humanity that makes him quite endearing.

Katona enriches his almost-famous character with a winning attitude, however artificial it may be, while Schultz impresses with his intellectual prowess, which is enough to sweep Amanda off her feet, even if he’s just a mailman.

“A Feminine Ending” delivers a lot of thought-provoking action during its 90 minutes, and director Timothy Douglas ensures the action is crisp and briskly performed. Treem’s characters would be welcome additions to our living rooms each week.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: “A Feminine Ending”

WHERE: South Coast Repertory, Julianne Argyros Stage, 655 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa.

WHEN: at 7:45 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays, at 2 and 7:45 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays until Jan. 27

COST: $28 – $62

CALL: (714) 708-5555

TOM TITUS reviews local theater for the Daily Pilot. His reviews appear Thursdays.