Louisa May Alcott’s “Little Women” has withstood the test of time – spawning countless incarnations as play, musical, opera, film, literature, even anime. The latest appears on stage at North Coast Repertory Theatre, adapted by Jacqueline Goldfinger.

Even the most ambitious of “Little Women” adaptations require trimming; the sprawling story follows the four March sisters along their coming of age journey into adulthood. Goldfinger’s cozy new adaptation brings some of the charm along with much of the tedium and sentimentality of its source material.

Little Women.

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Each sister has a distinct personality as well as, conveniently, a particular character flaw with which they struggle. Eldest sister Meg (Aaryn Kopp) grapples with envy and a desire for the finer things in life. Rebellious and independent Jo (Caroline Kinsolving) battles with her temper, while sweet Beth (Brooke Byler) is catatonically shy. Wannabe artist Amy (Maddie Shea Baldwin), the youngest of the bunch, tends to be selfish. The story follows the sisters as they struggle through the hardships of the Civil War, including newfound poverty, a father away at war, an imperfect nose, catty BFFs and what to wear to a ball. Young women in those days had real problems.

No, really. In between the silly teenage girl matters, Alcott’s protofeminist, Jo, wrestles to break free from societal expectations and limitations based on gender. Women and young girls still do today.

While this CliffsNotes adaptation touches on the gender issue, it doesn’t dwell on it. In fact, the play doesn’t seem to dwell on much, given the sweeping nature of Alcott’s novel and the constraints on creating a play with music while still trying to work in the main plot points along each sister’s own lengthy “Pilgrim’s Progress.”

Unlike most adaptations, Jo isn’t necessarily the center of this play. Rather, it is the family as a whole (almost – Dad is missing), and each sister’s role within it, including the extended “family” of neighbor Laurie (Tim Parker) and his tutor John (Brian Mackey), Aunt March and the poor German family they help feed. Alcott’s themes (and Puritan moralizing) are still there but given a somewhat lukewarm presentation.

That’s not necessarily the fault of the cast at North Coast Rep. Each of the women playing the four sisters clearly delineates their characters’ aptitudes, quirks and flaws. Kopp especially brings natural grace and restraint to Meg while Kinsolving gives the defiant Jo a fiery temperament along with an irrepressible playfulness. Linda Libby is the picture of Puritan motherhood as the devoted, pious and affectionate yet stern Marmee who encourages an almost dementedly optimistic outlook on their difficulties. Parker is charismatic and mischievous as Laurie while Mackey overplays Laurie’s tutor as a bumbling ball of nerves. Mackey also seems too young for the role while some of the March sisters seem to old for their roles. If you recall, Amy is 12 at the start of the novel while the eldest Meg is a mere 16.

Goldfinger and director Kirsten Brandt provide scene after scene of domestic life where the girls and their sturdy mother work, bicker, tease, tell stories, play and sing. Punctuated by blackouts, these, at times, delightful vignettes of family interactions provide insight into each of the characters but manage to feel rushed and tedious at the same time, especially in the first act. The second half helps ground the play, as it takes on much weightier subjects, with a death in the family and various members being pulled in different directions. The wrap up, though, feels abrupt (of course, much more happens in the novel).

Mary Larson’s costume and period songs, such as “When Johnny Comes Marching Home,” “Battle Hymn of the Republic” and “Nearer My God to Thee,” help define the era. Marty Burnett’s living room set gives the appearance of a once-wealthy household while a turntable showing the home’s exterior must do triple duty as various locales.

Though the production is competent, it tends to have the overall effect of a rocking chair on a sunny Sunday afternoon: pleasant but a little drowsy.