Build it and they will come.

"Sounds easy, doesn't it," says Bob Penny, head of Theatre Ancaster's team of set builders for Divas 2 On Broadway, "but those few words from Field of Dreams keep us hopping for a month or more. With a cast of 14 and an on-stage band led by Russ Weil, the set has to accommodate 20-plus people without looking crowded."

The set just doesn't get built in a hurry.

"We met first back in December. The set designer, Randy Osatchuk, put ideas from the director, Erin Bree Pierce, into visual sketches. Then we talked about the workability of the set, the construction and the engineering," said Mr. Penny.

"My job is to make sure the pieces fit together, and create the set the director envisions. It's no good if the pieces don't work after we've moved them to the stage. Measure twice and cut once may be an old adage, but it's true."

Mr. Penny always has help in Theatre Ancaster projects. Ben Klunder is one long-time supporter of Theatre Ancaster work. Mr. Klunder is a career carpenter, and along with Mr. Penny, has worked on many sets for Theatre Ancaster.

Also sharing the job is Harvey Elms, who joined Theatre Ancaster a few years ago when a friend of his was on stage. Bob Ferry is the new kid on the block this year. He's just moved in. Mr. Ferry has built sets for 15 years with theatre companies in Mississauga and Etobicoke.

Together they build. And soon it will be the community at large who will come to enjoy the drama and the music once again.

Ticket sales have been brisk. The box office is open for both phone orders at 905-304-SHOW (7469) and for personal selection of tickets weekdays from 6-8 p.m. in the West Wing Foyer just outside the Theatre Auditorium at Ancaster High, 374 Jerseyville Rd. W. at Meadowbrook.

Divas 2 On Broadway opens April 18 at 8 p.m. Other evening performances follow April 19, 25 and 26. There is one matinee on Sunday, April 20 at 2 p.m.