Twirling his hands in the air, Ron Kellum arched his back and strutted backward across the stage, counting time and urging Hartleigh Buwick, musical theater senior, to do the same.

“This is like your fantasy,” he said, directing her. “This should be like you’re alone in your living room.”

She followed his lead, performing the onstage maneuver several more times as she practiced her role as Roxie, the naive Midwestern girl thrust into the whirlwind of fame, murder and corruption that defines “Chicago.”

The Tony Award-winning musical opens at the Rupel J. Jones Theatre on Friday, and is the product of more than six weeks of rehearsal helmed by Kellum, a guest director who is a Broadway veteran and has an intimate connection with “Chicago.”

Kellum’s experience with the musical began more than 10 years ago, when he performed in the Broadway company on its first national tour. Since then, he’s played every male ensemble part in the cast, in addition to directing the show around the country.

“He has been incredible because he’s extremely knowledgeable about the show,” Buwick said. “He’s obviously done a lot with it. He just knows every in and out of every detail of the show, which is great for an actor.”

At first, Kellum wasn’t given much time to acquaint himself with the material. He had a week to rehearse before being thrown into performing it for the first time, he said.

“You really had to rise,” Kellum said. “With the best, they only expect the best. The learning curve was fast and steep, but it was such a huge accomplishment to have to really push yourself.”

In the midst of the frenzied pace, it was the camaraderie among the cast that set that experience apart, Kellum said.

“The sense of teamwork and support was phenomenal, so that’s why it ranks as one of the highest shows in my career,” he said.

Kellum has tried to foster that same atmosphere in his time directing “Chicago” at OU, said Lindsay Schwak, musical theater junior.

Schwak, who plays Velma, the starlet upstaged by Roxie, said Kellum encouraged the actors to have coffee with him to discuss the show or the theater business.

“Everything [about him] is so encouraging,” she said. “He’s the kind of person you want to work with in this industry.”

On the first day of rehearsal, Kellum told his actors that his stage was the safest place they could be.

“You have to make and allow actors to feel safe,” Kellum said. “The safer they are, the better they are to do the work and be creative like kids. They just explore whatever emotion they’re feeling and they don’t feel stifled by what people think.”

Joel Ingram, musical theater junior, plays the part of Billy Flynn, a lawyer hired to deliver innocent verdicts for guilty girls. He said Kellum’s willingness to let the actors explore made him feel like a professional.

“He did it in a way that didn’t make you feel dumb,” Ingram said. “Instead of just being like ‘This is what you do and that’s wrong and that’s wrong,’ he was very good at talking to us and making us realize and find for ourselves who our characters were.”

When “Chicago” opens this week, it will be an opportunity for the actors to put that exploration to good use, and for audiences to see a musical that can’t be seen just anywhere.

“This is a huge opportunity for [the university] because most professional theaters aren’t even allowed to do the show,” Kellum said. “It’s a very difficult show to get the rights for.”

Kellum credited relationships developed by Max Weitzenhoffer, the founder of OU’s musical theater program, and the quality work of the program for the ability to obtain the rights.

“Everything [here] is A-plus,” Kellum said. “Even in the professional world, I haven’t seen this level of care and attention to detail.”

Six weeks in Norman turned out to be a lot more interesting than he envisioned it, Kellum said, and working with a group of actors willing to push themselves has made all the difference.

“I always tell them, ‘If you trust me, we won’t fail,’” he said.

‘Chicago’ Showtimes

When: Friday — 8 p.m.

Saturday — 8 p.m.

Sunday — 3 p.m.

Oct. 23 — 8 p.m.

Oct. 24 — 8 p.m.

Oct. 25 — 3 p.m.

Where: Rupel J. Jones Theatre, 563 Elm Ave.

How much: $22 for adults; $20 for seniors/OU faculty and staff; $14 for students