Elf: The Musical

Buddy The Elf -
Dan Chevalier is thrilled to reprise the role of Buddy, returning from last year’s production of "Elf" at The Rose! He was most recently seen on stage as Tom/Tibbles in "Return to Niobrara". Over the past decade, Dan has appeared on stage at many theatres in the Omaha area, including the Omaha Community Playhouse, Bellevue Little Theatre, Chanticleer Theatre, and Shelterbelt Theatre. Some favorite roles include Snail in "A Year with Frog and Toad", Bud in "Gutenberg! The Musical!", and Alexander T. Wolf in "The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs". Dan is a graduate of the University of Nebraska-Omaha.

Jovie -
Regina Palmer is an Omaha based actress, model, teaching artist, and licensed massage therapist. She's had the amazing opportunity to perform on multiple stages in the Omaha, NE area including the Omaha Community Playhouse, the Blue Barn Theater, Nebraska Shakespeare, and The Rose Theater, as well as had the unique experience of performing In Traverse City, MI with the theater group Parallel 45. Some of her favorite roles include Ti Moune in "Once On This Island" with Snap! Productions, Quincy/Bart in "Mr. Burns" with Parallel 45 Theatre, and Dotty Moffett in "Caroline or Change" at the Omaha Community Playhouse. Regina is planning on relocating this Summer and looks forward to making art in her hometown until then.

Walter Hobbs -
Anthony Clark-Kaczmarek is thrilled to be as Walter Hobbs at The Rose Theater. He has been an actor and director in the Omaha metro for more than 20 years. Anthony is a previous Theatre Arts Guild Award, Omaha Entertainment and Arts Award, Elaine Jabenis Award, Barbara Ford Award, and Mary Peckham Award-winning actor. He has the honor of being the Principal at Alice Buffett Magnet Middle School.

Emily Hobbs -
Melissa King is thrilled to be back on The Rose Theater stage for this production, reprising her role as Emily Hobbs. She has been active in the Omaha theater community for the past several years, with some recent shows including "Bernhardt"/"Hamlet" (Brigit St Brigit- Rosamond Gerard), "Matilda: The Musical" (The Rose Theater- Miss Honey), "Ring of Fire" (Performing Artists Repertory Theater), "Faust" (Opera Omaha- Supernumerary), "Bold Girls" (Brigit St Brigit- Marie Donnelly), and "Parade" (OCP- Mrs. Phagan). As a bit of a Renaissance woman, she has been an artist of all kinds, from a nationally touring performer, to short film actor, costume and fashion designer, teaching artist, composer, and novelist. She graduated from the American Musical and Dramatic Academy's musical theater conservatory program with a CPPT, is a proud wife and mother, and is joyfully pursuing a career as a performer once again.

Michael Hobbs -
Tyson is so excited to make his debut at The Rose Theater! He has also been in many shows at the Omaha Community Playhouse including, John in "Fun Home" and a Schoolboy in "A Christmas Carol". Tyson lives in Carter Lake, Iowa with his parents and 2 annoying brothers and is an 8th grader at Woodrow Wilson Middle School in Council Bluffs, Iowa. He loves reading, writing, acting, singing, playing the clarinet, and going to school!

Santa Claus -
A veteran of nameless characters, (Dad- "Judy Moody", "Old Woman"- "Madagascar")
Karl Houser is thrilled to be back again at The Rose. A trained alumni of the Backline Theatre for Improv, and currently studying with Big Canvas, Karl can be seen anywhere the Omaha art scene will allow him. You can find his recent work with Vanity Project on facebook @VanityProjectImprov. Online you can find Karl on Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram and Tiktok @VeryGreatKarl. In person you can see Karl performing most weekends at The Backline with house teams Bounce House, Interrogated and with Vanity Project. Karl would like to thank his lovely wife Jessica for everything and anything forever.

Choreographer/Sam/Mrs. Claus -
Sue Gillespie Booton’s national tour credits include "Annie Get Your Gun", "Beehive", and
"Grease". Most recent credits include "Elf" (Sam/Mrs. Santa), World Premiere of "The Dollmaker’s Gift", (Pola/Rebecca), "Rocky Horror" (Columbia), "Ring of Fire" (Ensemble) and "Always,
Patsy Cline" (Louise). She was an original cast member in Omaha’s longest running musical, "Beehive" (Brenda Lee, Petula Clark, Janis Joplin), and appeared in shows on Royal Carribean, Carnival, Royal Viking and Europe’s Sally Cruise Lines. Other Rose stage appearances include "Madagascar" (Gloria), "Cinderella" (Fairy Godmother) and "Cat in the Hat", (Thing #1). Choreographic credits include "Elf The Musical", "Matilda", Disney’s "Newsies", "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever", "Madagascar", "Mary Poppins", "A Christmas Story", "Tarzan", "Narnia", "Peter Pan", "HONK!" and "Annie - The Musical". She won the 2019 Omaha Entertainment Award for “Outstanding Choreography” for "Newsies" and is the 2020 nominee for both "Elf" and "Matilda". She was inducted into the Nebraska Music Hall of Fame summer, 2019 and is the 2014 recipient of the National Freddy G Award given to outstanding musical theater educators as well as the 2014 Theater Arts Guild Education Award winner. Sue is The Rose Theater’s Resident Choreographer and Director of BROADWAY at The Rose, which includes The Rose Brigade and Dance Lab at The Rose. She is thankful to return to Omaha and continue her professional
career at The Rose Theater near friends and family.

Music Director -
Jerry Brabec, tenor, is an Ordained Deacon on the clergy staff at Omaha St. Paul United Methodist Church where he serves as Minister of Worship. His responsibilities include the overseeing of liturgical preparation for the congregation of 400. He also serves as choral director for Temple Israel’s Kol Rina. Awarded the Master of Music degree from the University of Nebraska, he studied choral conducting with Dr. Cina Crisara and Dr. Z. Randall Stroope. As a chorister of the acclaimed Robert Shaw Festival Chorus at Carnegie Hall, he sang for five years under the baton of the late Robert Shaw, was twice selected one of six participants in the Alice Parker Melodius Accord Fellowship Program and frequently continues his conducting studies with Ms. Parker during January in New York. At the Rose for the past eleven seasons, "Elf The Musical" marks his 40th show as a visiting music director/vocal coach. He also serves as music director for the nationally acclaimed Rose Brigade, one of the award winning offerings of the “Broadway at the Rose” program. Formerly, Jerry taught at the high school level for Council Bluffs Community Schools, served as associate artistic director of the Omaha Clarion Chorale, and as artistic director for the Kanesville Chorus and Renaissance Faire of the Midlands.

Director -
Matthew’s recent directing credits at The Rose include "Elf The Musical", "Prancer" and "A Christmas Story". Other directing credits include "Cyrano" with Parallel 45, "The Sparrow", "Twelfth Night" and "Anon(ymous)" at the Interlochen Center for the Arts, Wuthering Heights at the Mint Theatre in New York, and "Whacked Fairy Tales" at Twin City Stage. His plays have been workshopped/produced by Wordsmyth Theatre Company, Horse Trade Theater Group (NYC), Reverie Productions (NYC), Tri Sate Actors’ Theatre, and Magic Chicago. Matthew’s work for MagicMouth Theatre won a New Horizons Playwriting Award and the company premiered a new magic-theatre piece, "A Christmas Carol In Prose" with Parallel 45 in Traverse City, MI. He is the former artistic director of the Children’s Theatre of Winston-Salem and completed a fellowship with
the Children’s Theatre Company in Minneapolis under the mentorship of Peter Brosius. Matthew assisted Peter Brosius on productions of "500 Hats of Bartholemew Cubbins" and "A Christmas Story". He is a former Managing Director of the Yale Cabaret where
he produced over 14 world premieres. Matthew is also the recipient of a Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation Fellowship in Entrepreneurship, a member of the Lincoln Center Directors Lab, and a graduate of the School at Steppenwolf. He holds a BA in Theater from Wake Forest University and received an MFA in Theater Management from the Yale School of Drama. He is in his sixth season as artistic director of the The Rose.