Drumline Live brings the black marching band tradition to the theatrical stage for the first time in a 62-engagement U.S. tour, folowed by dates in Japan, Korea and Taiwan.

When actor Orlando Jones’ character in 2002’s “Drumline” urges his university marching band to “hit ‘em with a little ‘Flight of the Bumblebee’,” the band director’s not talking about serving up a sedate recital of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s famous 1900 orchestral work.

This is musical warfare, and the operatic interlude’s dizzying sting of frenetic 16th-note runs becomes a weapon in a half-time battle to outdo high-stepping, percussion-pounding and brass-blasting opponents on the football field.

The film, starring Nick Cannon as a Harlem street performer recruited to join a drumline at a southern university, helped reignite interest in a tradition begun more than 50 years ago at Florida A&M University, where marching-band performances were as much about the high-energy music as the funky, athletic choreography.

“Drumline Live,” a stage show set to take over the Capitol Center for the Arts in Concord on Wednesday, March 4, serves up a powerful drumroll in homage to that legacy with a cast of performers from some of the United State’s top Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), institutions established prior to 1964 with the mission to educate black Americans.

NH Weekend recently asked “Drumline Live” creator and musical director Don P. Roberts about the powerhouse production, which features the rousing and rhythmic sounds of the likes of brass masters Earth, Wind and Fire and Tower of Power, along with contemporary hip-hop and R&B selections.

NH WEEKEND: Can you tell me how many musicians, dancers and singers are involved in the show?

ROBERTS: We have 40 total cast (members) representing numerous Historically Black College and University bands all across America. The band is composed of one drum major, five dancers, one host and 33 wind and percussionist (players).

NH WEEKEND: Is the cast comprised of current university and college students or graduates?

ROBERTS: Both. We have graduates who were actually working full-time jobs but were selected to join the tour. We also have students who were actually enrolled in classes but chose to take a short sabbatical to join the tour. The age range of the band (members) is 20 to 34 years old.

NH WEEKEND: What are some of the universities and schools represented by performers?

ROBERTS: Florida A&M, Bethune Cookman University (Florida), North Carolina Central University, Southern University (Louisianna), Morris Brown College (Georgia), Norfolk State University (Virginia), Miles College (Alabama), and Tennessee State University, just to name a few.

Incorporating original compositions and soul-infused interpretations of Top 40 hits, group performances will range from colorful, choreographed routines to heavy doses of drum riffs and cadences. -- “Drumline Live” creators.

NH WEEKEND: Drumline performances are so energizing. Obviously band members have to be able to play instruments well. But I wonder about all the funky choreography. Can you tell me if being able to dance is a talent most already have when joining their school bands or do they have to do some hard studio work before taking the field?

ROBERTS: Believe it or not ... very few of our cast has had formal dance training. However, if they have marched in an HBCU band, I would definitely consider that as a training regimen in itself. It is an experience that you just can’t get unless you have marched in an HBCU Band.

We do have a few cast members who did not march in an HBCU Band — University of Georgia, Queens College, etc — and they are all doing quite well. However, they will be the first to tell you that “Drumline Live” was a new and different experience.

NH WEEKEND: It seems like just as much time would have to be spent on music as movement. Who created the choreography for this show and what are rehearsals like? Do band members work without instruments first and then progress both to playing the pieces and performing the steps?

ROBERTS: Our choreographers are Jacques Bell and Tovah Lovely. However, the choreography sometimes also comes from the general cast. We first typically learn the music. The choreographers will then work with a committee of cast members to finalize the routines, and then we teach the entire cast.

NH WEEKEND: What are some of the most challenging aspects of performing in “Drumline Live” for cast members?

ROBERTS: The most challenging aspect of “Drumline Live” is the physicality of the show. Your body has to be able to endure the high-energy marching and choreography night in and night out. Our goal is to give the audience an energy in movement and sound that they have never experienced in the theater before.”

Tickets to the 7:30 p.m. March 4 performance at the Capitol Center for the Arts range from $24.50 to $49.50 and can be purchased at the box office by calling 225-1111 or logging onto ccanh.com.