Freedom students to stage comedy

By Roni Gehlke
It didn't take long for Freedom High School's new theater director to see that the students at the Oakley school had a lot of talent. Michael Kleiman was hired when school started in July. Since then, he has been teaching ninth-grade English and working with the high school's Center Stage club.

"There are some very dedicated and talented students here at Freedom," Kleiman said.

In late August, Kleiman announced that Freedom's theater group would stage its first play in early November. He was excited to see that 50 students signed up to audition for the nine-person play.

In the end, 14 students and about 30 student volunteers were picked to be involved in the production of "The Ten Rules of Internet Dating."

The focus of the comedy, according to Kleiman, is the life of a man whose wife leaves him, forcing him to move in with his younger brother.

"The man's brother introduces him into the Internet dating scene, and the man learns a whole new way of life," he said.

Kleiman said there are many "Star Wars" references in the modern romance, and it has a great soundtrack.

Before coming to Freedom High School, Kleiman lived in Fort Erwin in the desert area of Southern California. While there, he taught middle school English and worked with the school's theater group.

"It is really different working with middle school-aged kids compared to high school age,"

Kleiman said. He said he is looking forward to doing some more grown-up varieties of plays than he did before.

"I'm hoping that we will be able to do a musical in the spring," he said. "High school level students are so much more excited about being in the plays."

Kleiman is a graduate of Western Michigan University, where he studied English and theater. He is enjoying being in the Bay Area now and likes seeing the green hills of the Delta region.
He is also happy to see how excited the students are about being involved in this production.

The Center Stage club at Freedom has roughly about 30 members, Kleiman said. He is hoping that the excitement over putting together this play will encourage more involvement from students. Theater productions are open to all students in all grades at Freedom and it isn't necessary to be part of the Center Stage club to be involved in one of the productions.

"Right now my goal is to have the kids feel proud about being in the show and have their friends feel envious of what they are doing," Kleiman said.

As part of the production, the students put together a preview trailer that was shown to other students during school announcements. "The kids had a lot of fun putting that together," he said.

Kleiman said that all of this is part of his master plan in building a reputable program for Freedom High School's theater department. He especially hopes that the students are happy about what they are doing, he said.

"The students are breaking down barriers and coming out of their shells," he said. "Even if they don't continue acting they are hard workers and I can tell they love every second of what they are doing and really enjoying themselves."

If you go
WHAT: "The Ten Rules of Internet Dating"
WHEN: 7 p.m. Nov. 5, 6; 2 p.m. Nov. 7
WHERE: Freedom High multipurpose room
COST: $15 adults,
$3 students