by Lorie Lewis Ham
Every fall Reedley High School puts on a play. They have varied from comedies, like last year’s student written play 30 Minutes til Curtain, to drama’s like Twelve Angry Jurors. This year they will be presenting Androcles and the Lion, opening this Friday in the Reedley High Performing Arts Theatre building.
“Androcles and the Lion is based on the fable whereby a mouse removes a thorn from a lion’s paw,” said KCUSD theatre arts coordinator Mark Norwood. “My goal for the fall play at RHS is to find either a student written original (like DJ Reimer’s last year) or a classical style/title such as Androcles which is in the style of Comedia Del Arte. My task then is to adapt and update the play so that it appeals to both the student performers and the audience.”
The cast of Androcles and the Lion includes RHS veteran’s like Zach Clemmer, who is a senior this year and has performed in several shows, as well as newcomers to the stage like senior Eli Bonami. 
“I am Pantalone, he loves money and nothing else,” shared Zach. “He is loud and a lot like the same Pantalone from a Servant of Two Masters (performed at RHS a couple of years ago). I have done a few other shows, all of them but one at Reedley High School. I was in Annie, Servant of Two Masters, Bye Bye Birdie, 30 Minutes til Curtain, West Side Story, and the one at the Opera house was Legends Too.”
“I am the captain,” said Eli. “He is very stupid, and thinks he’s all that. I’ve never done any other shows. I like being in a show. The best part is it being a new experience, and [it] has expanded how I view theatre. The hardest for me is line memorization.”
Androcles and the Lion performs November 8, 9, 14, 15, and 16 at 7:30 p.m. and November 10 at 2 p.m. at the Reedley High School Performing Arts Theatre, 740 West North Avenue, Reedley. Tickets are $7 for students and $10 for adults and can be purchased at the door and at Bike Trax.
Reedley High will be performing a musical this spring–watch her for details.
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