Realistic Make-Believe : Colin Quinn’s one-man show, “The Seven Sacraments,” spotlights colorful characters from “my block.”

STUDIO CITY — If you grew up anywhere near Colin Quinn in Brooklyn, don’t be surprised to find yourself in his play.

“It’s a compilation of people on my block,” says the actor-writer, whose one-man show, “The Seven Sacraments,” opens Oct. 29 at the Two Roads Theatre. Co-written by Lou DiMaggio, the 75-minute piece introduces audiences to a colorful band of characters, including a teacher, a Teamster, and a drug dealer.

“Most of them are Irish; a couple are Italian,” Quinn explains. “Each person tells a story that’s more or less a sacrament. One guy gets sprayed with a hose--that’s like a baptism. A couple of the stories are more literal.”

An earlier incarnation of “The Seven Sacraments” had a brief run in 1991 at the Tamarind Theatre, where it was directed by Ben Stiller. This time around, Quinn’s longtime friend Alan Gelfant is holding the reins. “Colin is a great writer, a wonderful performer,” says Gelfant, who is making his directing debut with this show. “He has the intensity of Lily Tomlin and Eric Bogosian, but it’s more thematic with the neighborhood and the Catholicism--it comes from such an interesting perspective.”

Quinn, 34, who got his comedy start in such New York clubs as Catch a Rising Star (where he was spotted by HBO), appeared on MTV’s “Remote Control” from 1987 to ’90 and starred in “One Night Stand” for HBO in 1992. His film appearances include “Married to the Mob” and “Three Men and a Baby.” Since July, he has been writing for Fox Television’s “In Living Color.” HBO is providing the seed money for the play’s two-week run. Quinn hopes it will later be performed and filmed in New York.

If that seems a little too close to home--geographically and emotionally--Quinn says he’s fully up to the task.

“It feels personal, yeah, but not too vulnerable,” says the actor, who cites Lily Tomlin as his influence in the solo-show format. “There are elements of my whole family in this show: my father, maybe my cousins--but we’re rewriting so much, every week there are new characters.” Quinn was tending bar in New York in 1985 when he was urged onstage at a comedy club by a friend. “Why? Well, I was considered quite the humorous one”--and says he found an immediate home.

The actor-writer admits he has his hands full now making the leap from comedy clubs to the legitimate stage. “The toughest part for me of being live is the serious moments, when the audience isn’t laughing, and I can’t tell how I’m doing,” he said.

“With stand-up you can try things out on an audience; with a play, you just keep rehearsing--then put it up. It’s a different kind of scary. Scary haha, as opposed to scary peculiar.”

Where and When What: “The Seven Sacraments.” Location: Two Roads Theatre, 4348 Tujunga Ave., Studio City. Hours: Opens Oct. 29 and plays at 7 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays, 3 p.m. Sundays. Ends Nov. 7. Price: $7. Call: (310) 535-1606.