Water-shooters, lights, and computers unite to create this Las Vegas spectacular.

Water shoots as high as 245 feet in the air, illuminated by thousands of lights and in time with classic songs. It's impossible not to be drawn into the magic of the water shows at the Bellagio hotel and casino in Las Vegas.

The eight-acre lake in front of the Bellagio hotel is the result of a partnership between the hotel and Wet Design, a Southern California-based company that designs and develops water features around the world.

Lake Bellagio's fountains are made up of 1,198 water-emitting devices. There are three different types: oarsmen, minishooters, and supershooters.

The oarsmen, which can spray water up to 70 feet, are the only devices that can turn. Oarsmen are able to rotate a full 360 degrees, creating some of the most fluid movements on the Lake. Minishooters can send water as high as 100 feet, and supershooters can send water up some 245 feet, creating dramatic blasts throughout the shows. Each supershooter tank holds more than 70 gallons of water.

The nearly 2,000 water-emitting devices can be contacted individually and are connected to the control center by 135 miles of wire and cable.

"The 1,198 [water-emitting devices] and 4,792 lights are individually addressed, so we can communicate with those devices," says Norman Valine, the front feature manager at the Bellagio. "If we have a problem occur during the show, we can communicate with the device and about 90 percent of the time get it back online prior to the end of the show."

Valine says there is rarely a problem large enough to shut down the show entirely.

"Two out of every thousand shows we see a failure on, and usually we can recover within five or 10 minutes, and put the show on."

Beneath the water, 4,792 lights, located along the support structures and on the oarsmen in the lake, accentuate the choreography. Each oarsman controls a group of four attached lights. Lights on the support structure of the minishooters can be controlled individually or in groups, while those on the supershooters are controlled as a single ring.

The shows, each set to a different song, run the gamut. There are currently 22 shows available, although eight run only during the holidays. The remaining 14 numbers are rotated throughout the day, and range from classical and operatic arrangements to Broadway show tunes such as "One" from "A Chorus Line" and favorites such as "Singin' in the Rain."

The shows are first choreographed on a computer known as the virtuette. The music is loaded in the machine, and then the number is virtually created. The show can be seen from every angle, and the program allows designers to avoid problems such as water overflow in the lake.

The water devices, lights, and music all come together through a simulated time code, which keeps each element on time and in line with the others. The result? A feast for the eyes and ears, and a memory not likely to fade.