Broadway play goes behind the music

Although “Stereophonic” is not a musical, it is easy to get carried away by the terrific original rock songs that run through it.

And because writer David Adjmi’s play, which opened Friday night at the John Golden Theater, is set in the mid-1970s, Will Butler’s music sounds authentically from that more avant-garde era. Almost strangely.

The former Arcade Fire member’s impressive jams are tuneful and raw; earthy rather than trippy; the stuff of the best road trips across the country.

And then, at the end, tragedy strikes. The songs, which we saw painstakingly rehearsed and recorded by a famous band over a year in two California studios, don’t even make it onto the final album.

It’s an incisive moment in a piece that, while not perfect in itself, fully understands what determined artists will do to achieve perfection. Sometimes the good has to be killed to make way for the great – consequences be damned.

And “Stereophonic” is three hours of consequences.

Imploding relationships, volcanic tempers, 4 a.m. work nights and an unlimited buffet of drugs and alcohol are here in this Broadway “Behind The Music.”

The fictional Anglo-American group – three men and two women – bears an uncanny resemblance to Fleetwood Mac. The comedy-drama is rumored to be inspired by the 1975 making of “Rumours.”

Could be. Who knows? But those who don’t know anything about Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks won’t get lost.

We meet alpha guitarist Peter (Tom Pecinka), the egotistical frontman, who is dating singer Diana (Sarah Pidgeon). Weird bassist Reg (Will Brill) is with keyboardist Holly (Juliana Canfield), who dreams of a quieter life and a nice house away from her bandmates. And drummer Simon’s (Chris Stack) family is back in Britain. Uh oh.

The quintet spent the years 1976 to 1977 making infinitesimal changes to songs, bickering, idle chatter, slamming doors, rinsing and repeating. Their sound engineers, Grover (Eli Gelb) and Charlie (Andrew R. Butler), are the few sane voices as the project becomes increasingly passionate and time-consuming. The show too, for that matter.

Adjmi’s piece is long – too long – because he attempts to accurately capture, in documentary style, the often mundane artistic process. Major scenes will be spent adjusting drum cymbals or having a singer do a section over and over again. Reg, although stoned, has a frivolous speech about houseboats that goes on forever.

That’s all well and good, but these slices of life don’t always capture the public’s attention. Some are just plain indulgent. Other pieces did a better job of finding depth in the hum, like Annie Baker’s “The Flick.”

Still, “Stereophonic,” directed by Daniel Aukin, is undeniably transporting, and it’s a pleasure to delve for a while into this creative and robust decade. David Zinn’s neat set is the control room of a recording studio, with a soundproof booth at the back of the stage behind glass. It casually evokes the 70s without becoming true “Brady Bunch” cuisine.

The actors, in boots and bell bottoms, lounge and perch on cushions and carpeted steps so comfortably that there’s no doubt for a second that these people have had a year of their life in this claustrophobic space. They click like a band should – the love and hate is palpable.

And yet, the most rewarding character to experience is, in reality, not a musician at all, but Grover the engineer. Gelb, in a subtle but touching way, builds the guy’s confidence as he moves from person to producer. He is the heart of the piece.

But I was most taken with Pidgeon, who, in addition to having the elusive rock singing quality in which courage meets tenderness, brings an appealing mystery and nostalgia to his talented character. Diana is obviously the star of the group, but she doesn’t seem to know it, until the extraordinary happens. Pecinka’s Peter, who becomes angrier as time passes, resents his girlfriend’s gifts over and over again.

If you look closely, you might see the reflections of Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham in the snowy hills.