Nansemond-Suffolk Academy students are ready to entertain this Friday and Saturday with a live performance of “Little Women,” the renowned Broadway musical based on the classic novel.

There will be showings at the school at 7 p.m. Friday and at both 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday.

Roughly 30 cast and crew members have been working to put this show on since the fall, rehearsing two to three times each week to memorize their lines, the songs and the choreography.

“It’s almost surreal at this point,” said ninth-grader Kate Bevilacqua, 14, who plays Jo March. “It was a lot of work to get here.”

The story of the four March sisters will be fully realized by the enthusiasm and talent of these young performers, and their stage has been set thanks to community support.

Smithfield Little Theatre provided striking costumes and props, while RPM Dance LLC and other volunteers helped build the set. Scenes will play out beside numerous pieces of period furniture that were loaned to the production by families and local antiques collectors.

There’s an antique desk that was once used in a schoolhouse, a genuine butter churn, Victorian chairs, chests and much more to bring the cast back to the 19th century. Director Renee Perry Mitchell applauded this support by the community.

“The beauty of theater is that it’s a community effort,” she said.

She described “Little Women” as a “cross section between then and now” that will entertain the older men and women who are familiar with the story, while still appealing to younger audiences with its Broadway execution and themes that still resonate today.

Those themes struck the young actors, as well.

“There are a lot of life lessons about loss and suffering,” Kate said about the production, “but there are also lessons about how you don’t have to be a cookie-cutter person. You can be anyone you want to be and still be successful in life.”

Above all else, she’s excited to show the people of Suffolk what she and the rest of the crew have in store.

“I think it’s going to be an absolutely spectacular show. The set, the costumes, the talent — there’s so much talent in this cast. It’s unbelievable,” she said.

“Little Women” will be performed at the main campus at 3373 Pruden Blvd. Tickets are $15 for adults and $10 for students and seniors. Students will pay $5 per ticket for the Saturday evening showing, which will honor the NSA seniors’ last performance before they graduate in May.

Tickets can be purchased at the door or in advance, either at the business office on the main campus or at RPM Dance LLC, 3885 Bridge Road.