The performers on the stage are so talented, so poised, so confident, and so professional that I almost forget they are high school students.

I am sitting in the darkened auditorium of the Roper Center for the Performing Arts watching “Voices of Virginia,” Governor’s School for the Arts’ 30-member international show choir in rehearsal for Get On Your Feet, their portion of this weekend’s upcoming Spring Rhapsody. Wearing rehearsal clothes and character shoes, the students–all of whom study musical theatre at GSA–are working their way through an impressively choreographed medley of well-known ABBA tunes. They execute the choreography with an enviable precision. When the number ends, a voice from the back of the house commands them to “hold. You can relax.” The performers all move to their next mark and wait patiently to resume. They comport themselves like Broadway veterans.

Of course, this is what most of the students in this talented group hope to be someday. They are in hour three of their afternoon-long rehearsal. It’s been a long day, to be sure, but that’s no different from their normal schedules. Students are admitted to GSA by audition, and attend their regular high schools for the first half of the day for their academic classes. Then they come to GSA for their arts curriculum. When most high schools are dismissing in the afternoon, these students still have several hours of classes to go.

Sitting in the lobby of the theater just a few minutes earlier I had the opportunity to speak with four of the performers, and choreographer Jeff Warner.

“So, how long is your typical school day?” I ask them.

“Let’s see…it starts at 7:30, and we finish here at 5…” says Caroline Lambert.

“Nine hours. Longer sometimes if we have rehearsal, sometimes we don’t get out of here till nine,” adds Brian Lego.

“But we get a dinner break!” adds Lambert.

“That’s a long day!” I exclaim.

“It’s worth it,” they agree.

“It’s definitely worth it,” reiterates Samantha Jervey.

This attitude is typical of artists, who often work very hard for very long hours, without ever really feeling it’s work. It is the advantage of doing what you love.

As I sit in the lobby interviewing the students, I am again struck by their poise and professionalism. They are warm, welcoming, natural and at ease with me during our brief interview. I suppose it shouldn’t surprise me. After all, they are well-travelled for such young people, having recently performed Get On Your Feet in Japan. The experience allowed them not only to bring some American culture to the East, but to be exposed to some Japanese culture as well. They had the opportunity to see numerous other performing groups including singers, dancers, and even a brass ensemble.

How was the experience?

“Highlight of my life!” gushes Helen Rolfe. “It’ll be downhill from here!”

When asked about their favorite part of the experience, they all agreed it was the exposure to Japanese culture. “We all stayed with host families,” explains Rolfe, “and that was a really wonderful opportunity.”

Get On Your Feet is a musical revue of familiar American pop music featuring songs not only from the aforementioned ABBA, but also Elvis, The Beatles, Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson, The Supremes, Gloria Estefan, and many others. Was that difficult for Japanese audiences to assimilate? Not at all. “I think it was very popular,” says Rolfe. “It’s something that they can all relate too as well.” “Music is international,” adds Jervey, “everyone can enjoy it.”

The group could name very few drawbacks to the trip, although, Rolfe reluctantly admits she was confused at first by Japanese bathing customs. In Japan, it is customary to wash yourself before you get into the tub, so many people can bathe in the same water. “I could not get the hang of it,” she admits, laughing, “it took me an hour the first time.”

“It was fun,” adds Lambert. “It was scary. I was afraid I would offend their culture, but it was fun.”

Those of us who were not able to travel across the Pacific to see Get On Your Feet in its Japanese engagement, have the opportunity to do so this weekend when GSA presents their Spring Rhapsody. The group will be joined by internationally acclaimed collegiate dance company, Nittai Dai, from Tokyo. Nittai Dai specializes not only in traditional Japanese dance, but also present modern dance pieces. Their program, in the first half of the evening, will differ on Friday and Saturday night. The talented GSA students will be performing their full program both evenings, and it is one that is sure to be a definite crowd-pleaser.

GSA’s Spring Rhapsody is playing Friday, March 26 at 7:30pm and Saturday, March 27 at 7:00pm at the Roper Center for the Performing Arts on Granby Street in downtown Norfolk. Seating is General Admission and tickets are $11. Tickets are available through the Virginia Arts Festival Box Office in MacArthur Center, through Ticketmaster, or at the door.