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CHARLOTTE—One Charlotte-Mecklenburg school is making history with the Broadway play, The Color Purple.

Northwest School of the Arts will become the first high school in North Carolina, and second in the nation, to bring the somewhat controversial show to the stage. However students and the director said they are ready.

Theatrical Rights Worldwide has released the rights to the school and The Color Purple will grace the stage this weekend. It's a play with some deep topics for the young actors.

"It's the story of a young lady named Celie, who was raped at the age of 14 and had her two children taken away from her and her quest to find herself and her quest to find love," said director Corey Mitchell.

Mitchell said Northwest School of the Arts is being used as a test school for future high schools that may decide to take on the show.

"There are areas of sensitivity for high schools and it's essentially us giving advice on how to handle this and how to work through this,” said Mitchell.

Mitchell said they have found ways to pull it off and he said while some scenes have been carefully done, the impact is still there.

CMS Superintendent, Dr. Heath Morrison, said he had the chance to meet some of the cast and he is certain the show will be something the community can be proud of.

"To take on a play that has the meaning, the themes, the relevance of 'The Color Purple', it's amazing," said Morrison.

Though some may see the lead, played by 11th-grader Keston Steele, as a heartbreaking tale, she sees it as much more than that.

"The whole circle of the story is just so deep and about how love comes from within so, it's really a beautiful story," said Steele.

The Color Purple will open Friday night at the Dale Halton Theatre in Uptown.