For the past three weeks, the cast of crew of Metamorphoses, a contemporary retelling of the myths of Ovid currently being staged at John S. Davidson Fine Arts School, have been spending an awful lot of time around the pool.

The play, which puts a contemporary theatrical spin on the stories of Midas, Alcyone and Ceyx, Orpheus and Eurydice, and Eros and Psyche, is remarkable not only for it literary conceit but also the singular stagecraft stunt required for the production. A fairly large pool of water has been constructed on the Davidson stage and the actors swim, sink, wade and splash through it over the course of the production.

"There was definitely some selling involved," said Betty Walpert, the production's director. "But I knew this was not a piece we could do unless we could commit to this pool. Mark (Gostoraski, the technical manager and scenic and lighting designer) was totally on board, but we still weren't sure how we were going to do it once we had committed."

Mr. Gostoraski admitted that adding the element of water, both in the pool and a shower/waterfall device, provided challenges he had not expected. He said significant research was done and assistance accepted from an unexpected source.

"Our biggest challenge and my biggest concern was how to do this and how to do it without destroying our theater if something went wrong," he said with a small laugh. "A big part of that came from talking to theaters that had done this before, but the biggest help came from Bob's Tropical Fish. They have helped every step of the way, from design to coming out and lining the pool."

Mr. Gostoraski said building the pool has been a learning experience not only for the students, but him as well. He said unexpected challenges constantly crop up and elements of the project continue to surprise him.

"We really had no idea what we were getting into," he said. "For instance, heating the pool. We had no idea about the science of that, no idea what it would take."

Still, Ms. Walpert said the issues encountered are certainly worth the effort, because in the end the water, a metaphor for change that links all the stories, becomes something much more that set dressing.

"It really is its own part, a being here with us," she said. "And because this play is about change, it really does become very important."

Reach Steven Uhles at (706) 823-3626 or steven.uhles@augustachronicle.com.