LOTS of young people get stuck on the music of their parents, like a needle in a record groove.

Retro is good, after all. And it’s sometimes modern and cool to be old-fashioned.

However, Clara takes a liking for older music a little too far. Although she’s just twenty five, she’s entirely captivated by the music of Elvis, Sinatra and Cliff Richard – which is not even the music of her parents’ generation.

What’s clear is that Clara, who works in a vintage record shop, spends most of her time in her head, and her head maintains only a passing relationship with reality.

That’s the theme of this week’s Oran Mor play, Vinyl Idol.

Written by Debbie Hannan and Andy McGregor, the play features Kara Swinney as Clara while Darren Brownlie and Paul James Corrigan star as her dream idols.

“Clara is obsessed with the vintage era, stars such as Sinatra and Elvis and she’s trying to finish her record collection,” says Kara.

“And then one day she manages to get this last record she’s been looking for, but as she plays it her whole world falls apart.

“She wakes up and Cliff Richard is singing to her.”

Is this a dream – or a nightmare? Is he singing Congratulations?

“No,” says Kara, smiling. “But Frank Sinatra is also there in her room. And really, the story is about how she has idolised this sort of lifestyle.”

And can’t cope. The play tells of a young lady out of time, and out of synch with the world around her.

“She doesn’t realise how strong she could be on her own,” says Kara.

“She’s not very confident in herself, she doesn’t have many friends or a boyfriend.

“What happens is no one can compare to these men who live in her head.”

Why has she picked this particular trio?

“I think it’s because they were icons of their time. But they’re not of her time at all.”

The play reflects the zeitgeist. It’s perfectly feasible a young lady in her twenties these days will know all about the music of the fifties and sixties. Kara certainly does.

“I’m a big Elvis fan and that’s because of my dad,” says the actress, grinning.

“I was brought up on Elvis music and my dad actually took me to Graceland when I was seventeen, the last family holiday before we did her own thing.

“So I know all about this style of music and I love it.”

Kara adds; “It’s really a big hipster thing at the moment to appreciate vintage. You only have to look at the number of vintage shops, music the fifties hair and make-up and otherwise, in Glasgow at the moment.”

Darren Brownlie and Paul Corrigan flit ‘madly’ between the pop stars.

However, without giving too much away, the events going on in Clara’s red head take a dark turn. She becomes completely overwhelmed by the experience of pop star visitations.

Her pop idols aren’t, she discovers, quite what they seem. And Clara has to deal with this, in a very spectacular way.

In fact, there’s a bloodbath.

“It does all go wrong,” says Kara smiling.

The performer is certainly loving the experience of becoming the lost record shop girl.

Growing up in Falkirk with a love for musical theatre (Barbra Streisand was her idol) Kara couldn't wait to grow up so she could attend musical theatre school - once she'd discovered such a place existed.

“It was only when I was thirteen I heard of a girl who was going off to the Dance School of Scotland at Knightswood.

“From that point, I just wanted to be older so I could go too. And that’s what I did.

“And when I was sixteen, for my birthday present I was taken to London to see Wicked. I was in heaven.”

After two years at the Dance School, Kara was accepted by the Conservatoire.

“I had to blag my way in,” she says, grinning. “At my audition I claimed to be able to play guitar, but the reality was I only knew one song, a Johnny Cash tune.

“But I have learned to play guitar since.”

Kara, who has starred as Annie in Annie Get Your Gun and appeared in panto in Stirling since graduating, will go on to appear in Glasgow Girls musical in the summer.

“This is what I’ve always wanted to do,” she says, smiling of her chosen career.

“And now I get to play a girl who loves Elvis and Cliff and Sinatra. It’s amazing.”

• Vinyl Idols is part of Oran Mor’s Mini Musical season, until Saturday.