When you hear "rock musical," you don't typically think "intimate exploration of interpersonal issues." And yet that's what you get with "Rooms," currently getting its world premiere at Geva's Nextstage. Unlike well-known rock spectacles "The Rocky Horror Show," "Tommy," or "Rent," "Rooms" keeps it small, using just the modest space, two chairs, a movable door, a guitar, two fantastic actors, and a kick-ass backing band to tell a charming, if slightly predictable, story about love and fame.

After a brief introduction, the story flashes back to Glasgow, Scotland, in the mid-1970's. Monica P. Miller can best be described as a theater spazz; she comes from an upper-middle-class family, attends university for musical theater, and believes that she has both the talent and the belly fire to make herself a huge star. Monica can write a clever set of lyrics, but she needs help putting them to music. Enter Ian, the brother of one of Monica's classmates, a reclusive musical savant-aspiring alcoholic from the poor side of town who wants nothing more than to sit in his room all day with his guitar and his music.

Despite the clashes in cultures and personalities, the two collaborate on a commission for Monica's friend's bat mitzvah (the hilarious "Scottish Jewish Princess," the moment the whole play clicks), and though the song bombs, they find success at an open mic, winning two tickets to London. There they become ensconced in the burgeoning punk scene, and the two opposites inevitably attract, even as their wildly disparate ambitions conspire to tear them apart. The fame-and-booze-are-destroying-us story has been told a million times over, and while "Rooms" offers up a couple twists on the trope, there's nothing you probably haven't seen before.

But the story is told well. By turns the script is clever, funny, heartbreaking, and uplifting. The music - especially in the first half of the play - is fantastically catchy; the songs don't sound a thing like the 70's time period the play is set in, instead taking on a more late 90's-early 00's folk pop sound. It's warm and lovely. The darker second half of the show abandons the jangly sound for a more experimental, dissonant sound, but there are some gems to be found there, too.

The success of the music and script depends largely on the performers, and Natascia Diaz as Monica and Doug Kreeger as Ian do an exemplary job throughout the show. Diaz has gorgeous exotic features and a booming, captivating voice. At first I thought she might be going a little over the top as Monica whirled about the stage in the beginning of the play. But then I remembered the theater girls I went to school with and, well, she got their almost pathological need to be the center of attention down pat. As the story progresses and Monica matures, Diaz's performance mellows considerably, but loses none of its intensity.

Kreeger starts out the play strong, putting his comic wit and everyday good looks (he reminded me of Simon Le Bon during his Duran Duran heyday) to good use as the introverted but undeniably likable Ian. As Monica's dreams start to come together, Ian starts to lose control, spurred on by his out-of-control drinking and his increasing discomfort with the rock-star lifestyle. Kreeger really goes for it, practically growling through some of the more desperate songs, holding little if nothing back.

From their bios I don't think either of the actors are Scottish, and yet they both do a good job with that signature brogue. The accent does occasionally make for some hard-to-decipher lyrics, but that's a minor quibble. The simple set, the smart direction, the energetic band - almost everything works perfectly in "Rooms."

"Rooms"

Through October 26

Nextstage, Geva Theatre, 75 Woodbury Blvd.

$17.50 | 232-GEVA, gevatheatre.org