Thor Christensen

Pop culture is filled with snarky quips about high school, from Bowling for Soup's "High School Never Ends" to Steve Carrell's line in Little Miss Sunshine: "High school, those are your prime suffering years. You don't get better suffering than that."

REX C. CURRY/Special Contributor

Edie Brickell, a 1985 graduate of the Arts Magnet School, performed Saturday.

But nary a bitter word was uttered at Saturday night's star-studded "Homecoming: Arts Magnet" concert at Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. This was a night to celebrate, not commiserate.

"I loved going to this school," said Edie Brickell, Class of 1985. She loved it so much, in fact, she wrote a tune about it especially for the event.

"If I had to be in high school again/Put me back in Booker T. Washington," she sang, flanked by New Bohemians guitarist Kenny Withrow, Class of 1983.

The show marked the reopening of the school after a $55 million expansion that added 170,000 square feet to the original 1922 building. The redo earned plenty of rave reviews.

"It's gorgeous," said Lost actress Elizabeth Mitchell (1988), the show's emcee. "Imagine what it'll be like for a new student to walk into this school."

The evening began on a festive note, with mimes and actors beckoning concert-goers to tour the classrooms. Then it was on to the brand-new courtyard amphitheater for performances by Ms. Brickell, jazz trumpeter Roy Hargrove (1988) and others.

Erykah Badu (1989) had planned to fly in between shows on her West Coast tour to perform. But she canceled because of an unexplained "minor injury."

Singer-pianist Norah Jones (1997) came from New York for her three-song solo set and deemed her high school homecoming "very strange, but also very cool."

That's also a fair description of her brand-new song, "Man of the Hour," a sultry ballad about how her dog is better than a boyfriend. She also sang "Painter Song" and Hoagy Carmichael's "The Nearness of You," a tune that seemed custom-made for the occasion.

"I actually learned that song from listening to a Roy Hargrove record in high school, which is kinda cool because he's playing after me."

Mr. Hargrove and his five-man electric band rocked the courtyard, completing a jazz-themed show that began with Grammy- winning keyboardist-producer Shaun Martin and his alumni group and also included a set by pianist Frank LoCrasto.

"It's like an extended family – this place nurtured them in a way that doesn't go away," said teacher Scott Davison, who was mentioned in Ms. Brickell's song ("teachers like Davison/show you what you can become").

"So many of us forget our high school years, but this school is like a highlight – it's a jumping off point," said teacher Niloo Jalilvand.

And in era of pre-fab American Idol-style stardom, Booker T. will always be "about sweat and hard work and integrity," said Ms. Jalilvand. "Success in the arts is rarely by accident."

Mr. Martin agreed, recalling the days when he got to school at 7:30 a.m. to practice and didn't leave till 10 p.m: "One night I even slept here."

"But most of it boils down to the teachers," he said. "This school could be across the street in the 7-11, and if you have teachers this passionate, they'd still make you what you are."