"The Notebook" was first a popular novel. Then it was transformed into a hit romance movie. Now, for the first time, the popular tale is coming to life on stage as a musical version of the story comes to the Denver Center for the Performing Arts in December.
Ahead of the holidays, CBS News Colorado got an exclusive advanced preview of the production as it visited Memphis, Tennessee. There, the cast and crew of "The Notebook" took Dillon Thomas backstage to see how the iconic rain scene from the movie is recreated on stage in the musical.
"Theatre is at its best when we are all working together and collaborating," said Justin Myher, stage manager for the tour.
The show uses modern lighting, projection and sound effects to make audience members feel they are no longer in a theatre but rather in a romance scene with the cast.
Myher said much of the stage design is centered around nature and themes of the outdoors.
"The elemental aspects of love, life and humanity are told through design, and that is very beautiful," Myher said.
However, creating a musical based on a hit film can come with extended pressure to meet audience expectations. For those on "The Notebook" tour, that mainly revolves around nailing the scene from the film where the main characters, Allie and Noah, are embracing each other in the rain.
"(Audience members) are going to be like, 'How are they going to do the rain?' We really had to figure out how to do it," Myher said.
Myher and his team took CBS News Colorado's cameras backstage to show how the magic of that moment on stage works.
A large tank hidden behind the stage holds the water, and tubing running up into the rafters of the stage helps pump the water above. Then, on cue, Myher can start a sequence that begins to drop the water down to the stage.
An eight-foot-long contraption helps slowly drizzle the water. Myher's team then can ramp up the speed of the rain, matched with intensity by sound effects and lighting design that mimics a thunderstorm.
"It heightens everything. It gives it this childlike wonder for the two characters in the show," said Ken Wulf Clark, the actor who portrays "Middle Noah" in the show. "Something happens when there's the sound and feeling of rain around you. Things become simpler, more emotionally available. Something happens in life when you are outside in the rain, and that is translated well here in that scene. That is one of the reasons it is so iconic."
By combing new music, lighting design, sound effects and real water on stage, those with the production said ticketholders are often left in applause after that scene.
"I feel like we really know we nailed that moment if we get a huge response," Myher said.
"It is incredibly sexy. That is our Spider Man kiss. That rain scene is incredible," said Sharon Catherine Brown, the actress who portrays "Older Allie" in the show.
The Notebook plays the Buell Theatre Dec. 16 through the 28.