Everybody has a story, but some are more interesting than others. So you take your chances with Zach Helm’s Interviewing the Audience, currently at the Vineyard Theatre. Based on a concept created by the late Spalding Gray, this theater piece is akin to tuning in to a random episode of Dr. Phil.

In this theatrical exercise, Helm--the screenwriter of Stranger Than Fiction and Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium (he also directed the latter)—randomly selects audience members and brings them onstage for impromptu chats. Since every performance will be entirely different, the results are inevitably varied.

At the show caught, the subjects included a pathologically shy 16-year-old who confessed to seeing a therapist for her social anxiety; a Brazilian college student visiting the U.S.A.; and an older woman who talked at length about her relationship with her daughter living in Colorado.

The unassuming Helm, who thankfully takes no for an answer should you choose to decline his invitation—“We have a lot of voyeurs here tonight,” he commented upon seeing the large number of hands raised by those who didn’t wish to participate—takes an almost therapeutic approach to his gentle interrogations. Unlike Gray, who added a layer of irony to his questioning, he projects an attitude of sincere caring.

He begins each talk with the same question, “How is it that you came to be at the theater?” After that, he wings it, although he frequently finds interest in articles of clothes the person is wearing. In the case of the withdrawn teen, who came to the stage wearing a wolf’s head hat, complete with ears, that nearly covered her entire face, it provided plenty of fodder for conversation.

There is certainly something gripping about people suddenly opening up about their lives in front of a large group of strangers, and the solicitude expressed by Helm was frequently touching. He adds a personal level to the proceedings by frequently revealing intimate details about his own life.

Since none of the three women at the performance caught were particularly interesting or articulate—the Brazilian warned up front that her English language skills were lacking—the results were somewhat less than compelling. But in a spontaneous atmosphere such as this, lightning is bound to strike, so your experience may be far different. As much social experiment as it is theater, Interviewing the Audience is a slight but undeniably fascinating experience.

Vineyard Theatre, 108 E. 15th St. 212-353-0303. Through Feb. 27.