THEATER REVIEW:Classic, parody share the stage

Artistic achievement often is followed by broad parody. Mel Brooks has made a comfortable living mocking hit movies like “Frankenstein,” “Robin Hood” and “Star Wars,” and the “Forbidden Broadway” people have been chipping away at top-rated musicals for years.

Tennessee Williams first gained a measure of fame with “The Glass Menagerie” in the mid-1940s. Three decades later, Christopher Durang took a shot at it with “For Whom the Southern Belle Tolls,” a devastating satire based on this theatrical classic.

Vanguard University is offering both versions — Williams’ original set in a St. Louis apartment in 1935 and Durang’s takeoff, placed in the same apartment, circa 1975. It’s a rare opportunity to measure the superlative original against the searingly silly (and mercifully brief) lampoon it inspired.

Susan K. Berkompas, who directed both versions, has fashioned a superbly moving revival in her seamless 90-minute cutting of the original Williams drama. The 25-minute sendup that follows is a bouquet to her students who have been coaxing her to stage a Durang piece.

Williams delved deep into his own experience for “Glass Menagerie,” a story of a Southern-bred mother and her two adult children surviving the Depression before the playwright’s own character flees the nest. The son, Tom (Williams’ own real first name), both narrates and appears in the play, which centers on the mother, Amanda, and her quest for a gentleman caller for her slightly crippled and painfully shy daughter, Laura.

At Vanguard, some brilliant performances emerge, chiefly Andy Christensen’s embittered Tom, whose loosely reined frustration often bursts out under the constant pressure of Amanda, beautifully interpreted by Chelan Glavan. Glavan captures Amanda’s chatterbox style and pained regret with consummate skill.

Allison Schlicher, demure and hesitant as the fragile Laura, has some heart-rending scenes, particularly in the climactic sequence with the gentleman caller, played glibly by Aaron Campbell. The latter’s drive and determination resonate strongly compared with the other three characters, whose lives appear to be approaching dead ends.

Following intermission, “For Whom the Southern Belle Tolls” takes the stage in a refurnished setting with the family name changed from Wingfield to Wingvalley. Durang’s switch is turning Laura into Lawrence and making his prospective date a macho biker chick with zero interest in men.

Sasha Stewart revels in the motor-mouth mother’s role while Will Pruett makes his character more akin to Williams himself in terms of sexual preference. Jonathan Barger gobbles the scenery as the hopelessly retarded Lawrence (whose glass “menagerie” consists of swizzle sticks) and Brianna Sehorn is exceedingly funny as the mannish young lady who seems to have lost part of her hearing to the roar of her motorcycle.

It’s not often that theatrical greatness and stinging satire can coexist on one stage, but Vanguard has accomplished this feat with its unique double bill, presented as both homage and satire.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: “The Glass Menagerie” and “For Whom the Southern Belle Tolls”

WHERE: Vanguard University Lyceum Theater, 55 Fair Drive, Costa Mesa

WHEN: Closing performances at 8 p.m. tonight and Saturday, and at 2 p.m. Sunday.

COST: $8 to $10

CALL: (714) 668-6145