By Emma Bouthillette
Staff Writer
“It’s the hard-knock life for us!” 11 girls sang as they pretended to scrub the floors on their hands and knees during Dynamic Production’s rehearsal for the upcoming performance of “Annie.”
Dynamic Productions, founded by Cheryl Greeley, Nathan Schuster and Jeff Poulin, provides a community theater opportunity for local actors. They opened for business June 1 and rehearsals are underway for their first production. The three Scarborough residents are currently operating the theater company out of their homes and using Greeley’s studio for rehearsals.
 “There is not a lot of opportunity for kids to go out and be in plays unless they want to spend $300 to $500 to be in a camp performance,” Greeley said.
Greeley, Schuster and Poulin joined together to develop the company based on their passion for theater. Greeley and Schuster are the theater group’s professional directors. Greeley has owned Cheryl Greeley Theatra-Dance on Broadway in South Portland for 21 years, teaching dance and musical theater. Schuster graduated from the University of Miami with a degree in theater arts. Poulin will begin college this fall, majoring in entertainment business at Oklahoma City University.
Dynamic Productions is free to those in the community wishing to act, and the company’s goal is to provide a learning experience for their actors.
“It redefines community theater by giving youth and local actors a chance to connect with professionals, like Nathan and Cheryl, or others from New York, Vegas and Michigan,” Poulin said.
 “I want to instill passion for performing. Kids and adults naturally love acting, but don’t know why. This will instill a pride in building a show, your own production and is a chance to bring community theater to a more artistic level,” Schuster said.
Poulin, a recent Scarborough High School graduate, said he hopes to see Dynamic Productions become a vital part of the local performing arts scene.
“Dynamic Productions should be that company that everyone goes to for training, acting and defining community theater,” Poulin said.
Greeley said some 170 kids turned out to audition for roles as Annie and her fellow orphans. Of the 170, only 20 were chosen for the performance, Poulin said.
“‘Annie’ is a familiar musical. We are trying to dust it off. If you come at a production with an exciting view, you will get a great performance,” Schuster said.
This production of “Annie” has turned community theater into a family affair, Greeley said.
Greeley will play Miss Hannigan, her daughter Rachel Greeley will play Lily St. Regis and son-in-law Schuster will play Rooster Hannigan. She said Rachel Friedman, 11, of Portland, will play Annie and her father, Greg Friedman, was cast opposite her as Daddy Warbucks.
Greg Friedman has no previous acting experience, but he decided to audition for the production during time off recovering from a broken leg. He said his busy schedule as a pilot would not generally allow him the time to participate in a performance.
“At first I thought it would be tough or embarrassing, but I found it easy working opposite Rachel because of the built in father and daughter chemistry,” he said.
Rachel Friedman is no stranger to performing arts. She said she has been dancing since the age of 2 and singing since she was 6 years old. Her acting career began three years ago when she played a role in “The Sound of Music” under the direction of Michael Donovan for Lyric Music Theater in South Portland. Rachel Friedman is also the organizer of Perform for a Cure, an annual variety show in Portland that has raised more than $20,000 for the American Cancer Society and the Cancer Community Center in South Portland.
“When I auditioned I pretty much wanted to be Annie. I’ve been watching the movie all my life,” she said.
Schuster said following “Annie,” Dynamic Productions is planning a performance of “Santa’s Christmas Crisis,” an original play by Cheryl Greeley.