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"All right, ladies and gentlemen, let's have a performance today."

With those words from Larry Van Deventer, director of the Colonels' Theatre Company at William Fleming High School, the students hurried into place. They quickly pushed the set onto the stage and got into their places or found a seat in the audience.

Krista Borling then walked to the front of the stage and began singing "Every Story Is a Love Story."

And so began a Feb. 22 rehearsal for the theater department's production of Elton John and Tim Rice's version of "Aida." The musical tells of the Nubian princess Aida and Radames, the Egyptian soldier who steals her heart. The timing of their romance couldn't be worse, as Radames is engaged to Amneris, a spoiled Egyptian princess. The Egyptians also have been capturing and enslaving the Nubian people, including Aida.

"When you get to the end of this performance, you'll have tears in your eyes. It's so powerful and so passionate," stage manager Sarah Furrow said.

The theater department isn't cutting any corners with its production. In order to make the performance as similar as possible to the Broadway show, the school has spent about $6,000 to rent actual Broadway costumes. The group has studied pictures and recordings of the Broadway performance in hopes of mirroring the set.

Undertaking such an elaborate play was especially difficult for the group since William Fleming High and some other Roanoke City Schools lost funding associated with magnet programs last year.

Van Deventer would have used the extra money for his fall and spring productions. Instead, "we're solely dependent on our box office," he said.

The theater department paid for the costumes, the set and other production needs with donations. The group also used money raised with its fall production of "Mousetrap" and borrowed money from the school's visual arts department and band.

For the department to break even, Van Deventer said, every seat will have to be filled during the four performances of the musical: March 16, 17, 23 and 24.

"Most schools would not take on a show like this," Van Deventer said. "I like throwing challenges at my kids."

The power outage during the Feb. 22 rehearsal was a challenge he didn't plan.

Unusually high winds knocked out power in parts of Roanoke that day, including the auditorium at William Fleming High School, where the students were rehearsing.

"Keep going," Van Deventer shouted from the audience.

Furrow and other students scurried around, propping open the auditorium doors to let in some sunlight. Lanterns were placed on the stage, and a couple of students pointed flashlights at the stage.

Leaves blew across the stage, and some cast members wore coats as shields against the chilly winds.

The power outage meant Lenora Turner, the music director for the show, couldn't play her keyboard. So Farrah Johnson, one of two young women playing Aida on alternate nights, sang a capella as did the rest of the cast.

From the audience, Sarah and Van Deventer marveled at Farrah's voice.

"It's spine-tingling to hear the music," Sarah said earlier.

The music is what some of the students said first made them fall in love with "Aida."

Junior Nick Poole, who plays Zoser, the chief minister and Radames' father, said he hasn't seen a performance of "Aida" but that he and sophomore Paulmer Hall heard the Broadway tunes from Krista.

"It blew me away," Paulmer said.

Patrick Welch, a freshman at Virginia Western Community College, portrays Radames in the musical; VanDeventer sought his help to fill out the cast. Welch had a simple reason for wanting to join.

"It was written by Elton John," he said.

Although John isn't one of his favorite artists, Welch said he respects his music. He was particularly moved by the songs in "Aida."

"Just listening to the songs gave me chill bumps," he said.

When he was a student at William Byrd High School, Welch said, his theater department attempted classics such as "Oklahoma" but nothing on the scale of "Aida."

"I love their program," Welch said of the Colonels' Theatre Company. The group performs "things that most high schools don't attempt doing. He [Van Deventer] likes to go beyond what any high school has done before. That's awesome."

During the rehearsal, Van Deventer continued to push the students to make the most of the rehearsal despite the blackout.

"Get some oomph in it, baby," Van Deventer said during a fight scene involving the chief minister and the servant Mereb, played by Nick and Adrian Ambrose, respectively.

"Kill that guy with some relish!"

The students' hard work paid off in the end. As they gathered for a last bit of feedback, Van Deventer told them how proud he was of their efforts.

"You guys became a real cast today," Van Deventer said at the end of the rehearsal. He reminded them of the upcoming date of their first performance; they have less than two weeks to rehearse.

He told them, "We will build this to a pinnacle that will be unbelievable."