ON THEATER:

Back in 1996, South Coast Repertory premiered a two-character play that knocked the socks off its audiences before going on to become a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Thanks to the abdication of “King Lear,” it’s back for those who may have missed it with all its intellectual fireworks intact.

When “Lear” was scratched as the season’s finale, SCR came up with a brilliant idea — bringing back Donald Margulies’ “Collected Stories” with the memorable actress from the first production, Kandis Chappell, reprising her role of a veteran short story writer and fearsome professor who mentors an ambitious young student.

The result, under the strong directorial hand of theater co-founder Martin Benson, is pure theatrical dynamite, which sizzles for most of the play before igniting in a furious finale. Both Chappell and young Melanie Lora are superb in their contrasting characterizations.

Chappell’s Ruth Steiner is a semi-reclusive intellectual and professor of writing at a New York college who reluctantly takes on Lora’s perky blonde Lisa as her assistant, aware that Lisa has long been a devoted acolyte of the older woman and hopes to pick her brain for career direction.

Lisa does more than just pick, however. She delves into the private realm of Ruth’s life, discovering the professor’s traumatic affair with real-life poet Delmore Schwartz, who drank and drugged himself to death 30 years earlier. This knowledge leads to the emotionally charged faceoff at the close of the play.

Chappell re-creates the role of Ruth with authority and gusto, combined with a series of wry observations calculated to convulse the audience at the most unexpected moments. Gradually, she moves from instructor to mentor and, ultimately, to warm friend, which renders the firestorm of the final scene that much more powerful. It is an exceptional performance by an exceptional actress.

Far from being overshadowed by Chappell’s force of will, Lora brings her youthful ambition full bore into her mentor’s world, and audiences of a certain age would not be too far off were they to draw a comparison to Anne Baxter in “All About Eve.” Lora’s transformation from eager student to successful novelist is beautifully presented.

The drama unfolds against the backdrop of a well-worn Greenwich Village apartment, impressively designed by Thomas Buderwitz with meticulous attention to detail. Angela Balogh Calin’s contrasting costumes also enrich the production.

“Collected Stories” is a study in contrasts — of ages, of backgrounds and of mindsets. It’s the most impressive work at South Coast Repertory from a playwright with many SCR credits and thoroughly deserves this richly enacted reprise.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: “Collected Stories”

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

WHEN: Tuesdays through Fridays at 7:30 or 8 p.m., Saturdays 2:30 and 8 p.m., Sundays at 2:30 and 7:30 p.m. until June 14

COST: $28 to $64

CALL: (714) 708-5555

TOM TITUS reviews theater for the Independent.