Lane Swedberg

Buddy the Elf

Bringing the character of Buddy the Elf to life has been an absolute joy for Lane! While he has worn many hats on and off the stage at the North Platte Community Playhouse, it’s always a thrill to be back under the lights. You may have seen him in productions such as Something Rotten, Clue, or The North Platte Canteen: A Musical Miracle. Lately, he has spent more time behind the scenes—directing Footloose, serving as musical director for Little Shop of Horrors and Sister Act the Musical, or playing in the orchestra pit. Whether on stage or in the production team, he’s grateful for the chance to help bring stories to life with such an amazing community. Thank you for supporting live theatre, and he hopes you enjoy experiencing the holiday spirit with us in Elf the Musical!

Rebekah Holland

Jovie

Rebekah is the high school band director here in town, originally from Oklahoma and a proud University of Arkansas college grad. She spends her days conducting chaos—musical and otherwise—and her nights reading or watching Dancing With the Stars. She firmly believes “the best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear…” preferably in tune!

Aaron Halling

Walter Hobbs

Aaron is switching his “focus” from eyecare to holiday cheer in his North Platte Community Playhouse debut! When he’s not on stage, he’s a local Optometrist at Clear Focus Eyecare, alongside the twinkle of his eye—his wife, Jobeth. He enjoys long walks on the (South) Beach with Jobeth and their dog, Willy. Aaron is so happy to be part of Elf The Musical and hopes to “see” you there!.

Jess Kreger

Emily Hobbs

Jess is absolutely delighted to be stepping into the world of Elf the Musical as Emily! This story’s big heart, laughter, and Christmas magic make it one of her all-time favorites, and she’s thrilled to share it with all of you. Local audiences may recognize Jess from her previous roles as Mrs. Phelps, the kind-hearted librarian in Matilda the Musical; Mrs. Beaver in The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe; and Rosie in The North Platte Canteen: A Musical Miracle.

When she’s not performing, Jess can usually be found spending time with her amazing family, spoiling her two corgis, or hunting for her next whimsical addition to her ever-growing nutcracker collection (which might just be taking over her house!). She’s endlessly grateful for the support of her loved ones and for the joy that community theatre brings to her life.

Jess wishes everyone a sparkle jolly Christmas and hopes Elf fills your heart with as much laughter, warmth, and holiday spirit as it has hers!

Liam Pedersen

Michael Hobbs

Liam is a very talented and ambitious 6th grader. His most notable performance was playing the role of Gene Slattery in the production, The North Platte Canteen: A Musical Miracle. Liam’s other interests include: showing his dog Rey in 4-H, playing the trumpet in the school band, and is on year 3 of formal violin instruction. Liam loves to play the card game Nertz, and will drop anything if challenged to a game of chess.

Shelly Deardoff

Mrs. Claus

Shelly has been involved with the theater “for years”. She is excited to see her daughters shine in this performance and is proud of how much work the cast and crew are putting in to bring this story to life. Bob, her love, is the foundation of the family, and that makes this all possible!

Kevin Stark

Santa Claus

Kevin is married to his wife, Mavis. He retired after 44 years at Gerald Gentlemen Station. He enjoys reading and spending time with his family. This is his first community production and the Playhouse is so excited to have him grace our stage!

Benjamin Hill

Macy’s Manager / Fake Santa

Benjamin is merrily to perform as the Macy’s Manager for his 20th show at the NPCP. He works here at the Fox as Technical Manager plus Movies on the weekends. He calls North Platte his home and the North Platte Community Playhouse his home away from home where he has performed: Mushnik in Little Shop of Horrors, Denver in The North Platte Canteen A Musical Miracle, Nigel in Something Rotten, and more. He loves his great big Chocolate Lab named Cocoa, only weighing 130lbs of pure happiness! He’s a good boy! He would like to thank you for supporting this little gem of the community as the arts are always a necessity within each community!

Suzi Knolles

Deb

Suzi is excited to be back on stage at our gem of a community playhouse! She has been in many shows over the years but most recently you may have seen her in The North Platte Canteen, Sister Act or Mamma Mia. Suzi loves volunteering at the playhouse and encourages you to join the fun!

Grace Owen

Sam

Grace is so excited to be a part of Elf the Musical! She was recently in Footloose the Musical and has been a part of four other shows at the Fox Theater. When she’s not on stage, Grace is a busy homeschooled student, and she enjoys being a big sister. Grace would like to thank her family for their love and support.

Katy Pedersen

Sara

Katy resides in North Platte with her husband, Nathan. She has two sons, Liam and Eli. Katy works as a dental hygienist, is an active member of the worship team at her church, and devotes her spare time to helping out with her son’s activities.

Declan Burrows

Matthews / Macy’s Elf

Declan is 14 years old and currently a freshman at North Platte High School. He loves theater and has been doing it since 2018. He might love singing even more than he loves theater, but it’s really a toss-up. He has 4 dogs and 4 cats (don’t tell the dogs, but he’s more of a cat person).

Quintin Lawson

Chadwick / Fake Santa

Quintin works at Cody Park during the summer but otherwise he’s full time at school and various activities. He’s engaged in many clubs and activities from Mock Trial to FBLA to theater productions. His favorite dog ever is always waiting for him to come home: a purebred English Bulldog named Chewie. When Quintin is not playing with him, he’s a big computer guy and loves to deep-dive on topics to learn when not at school for the other 7 hours of the day.

Booker Lehman

Jim / Fake Santa

Booker is a student at Mid-Plains Community College studying Information Technology. He grew up in Nebraska and loves small-town life. Outside of school, he enjoys tractor pulling, gaming, and hanging out with friends and family. He also has done things like journalism, volunteering, and helping out with school events. A fun fact about him is that he’s been in choir in the past years and always enjoy finding new ways to perform and entertain people.

Elias Gamble

Security Guard / Policeman Vinnie / Fake Santa

Elias Gamble is a fifteen year old boy currently residing in North Platte, Nebraska. Elf the Musical is his first role in a major production, and he is super excited! He is homeschooled at The Great Adventure Academy and loves being steeped in good literature. A few of his favorite books include The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien and The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. He also enjoys watching movies, and some of his favorites are Interstellar, Gladiator, The Lord of the Rings, and How To Train Your Dragon. However, on top of all that, he enjoys writing his own stories. Now he realizes that his biography is probably too long, so he’s going to stop here. Soli Deo Gloria!

Dani Chapman

Souvlaki Vendor

Dani has 5 pets. 3 cats and 2 dogs. They are the best and yes, she is bias. She makes trinkets and such which is relaxing for her. One day she would love to play Pinocchio in Shrek the Musical.

Ellie Long

Macy’s Elf

She loves drawing, reading, and music. She’s in marching band and she loves goofing around with animation!

Mykayla Hastings

Flyer Guy

Mykayla loves art and acting. She loves to write, read, learn about how the human body works and the strange things it can do.

Bentlie Ebmeier

Macy’s Elf

Bentlie is 7th grader at McPherson County Public School. She is active in all sports and FFA. Bentlie loves to ride her four horses and has several other pets. On her down time she enjoys hanging out with friends. She has been in Drifty 3 years, she was stage crew for Something Rotten and was in the ensemble for The Canteen. She was also an orphan in Annie and a story teller for Shrek. She loves the Fox Theater!!

Elise Eickhoff

Charlotte (Reporter for NY1)

Elise is a freshman at St. Pat’s. She is involved in basketball, volleyball, track and choir. She loves doing theater and has done many shows such as Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe, Kid Frankenstein, Annie Jr. and Shrek Jr. She’s really excited for everyone to enjoy this show!!

Micah Swedberg

Policeman Doug / Fake Santa

Micah recently moved back to the area after college. He works for an organic farm as well as helps run the family farm. He is excited to be making is debut with North Platte Community Playhouse. He is returning to the stage since competing with high school one acts. Getting my feet wet by playing the role of a dancing Santa has been a great experience.

Collin Swedberg

Mr. Greenway / Fake Santa

Collin is thrilled to return to the stage as Mr. Greenway in Elf the Musical! Previous roles include John Brooke (Little Women), Rolf Gruber (The Sound of Music), Fyedka (Fiddler on the Roof), Cowboy Bob (Footloose), the Minstrel (Something Rotten), and ensemble in Mamma Mia!. When he’s not in the spotlight, Collin teaches high school agriculture and serves as an FFA advisor—proving that whether it’s cornfields or Christmas cheer, he’s always helping something grow.

Landon Swedberg

Macy’s Fake Santa

Landon lives in Wallace, Nebraska and is the branch manager at Dayspring bank in Wallace. He also has his insurance license and sells crop insurance as well as home/auto. This is Landon’s second time being on stage as he was recently Chuck Cranston in Footloose this past spring. After his rough, tough, bad guy performance in Footloose, Landon was given the opportunity to fill in as an actor for Rascal Martinez’s new music video “Don’t Even Know Ya,” where he met his beautiful and talented girlfriend Katy.

Camdon Bryant

Elf

Camdon is in the fourth grade at McDaid Elementary. He has three brothers. In his spare time he enjoys playing video games and putting together legos. He is very excited to be a part of this production.

Eryn Hardy

Elf

Eryn is a bright, creative, and energetic 5th grader who loves music, art, and spending time with her family and friends. She enjoys performing, dancing, and making people smile. When she’s not practicing, she likes to play games, write stories, and spend time with her four pets — two dogs and two cats. A fun fact about her is that she LOVES ramen and says it’s the best food ever!

Rayleigh McKain

Elf

Rayleigh is in 5th grade at Our Redeemer School and is so excited to be on stage as an elf in the musical Elf! She has been in many productions at the North Platte Community Theater. Her most recent ones were the lead role of Annie, Gretl in the Sound of Music, and made an appearance in Shrek and many others! She encourages other young kids to get on the stage and try something new! .

Jayna Sutphin

Elf

Jayna is homeschooled and in the fifth grade. She was Wendy in her homeschool co-op’s performance of Peter Pan. She realized how much she loves acting and is so excited to be on the big stage at the Fox for the first time! In her free time she loves to read, sing, and spend time with her siblings. Some of her favorite musicals are Wicked, Les Mis, and The Sound of Music. It would be a dream come true to get to perform in any of those some day!

Ayh Maria Mayhue

Elf

Ayh is 10 years old. She has 4 people in her family. Her favorite color is blue. She enjoys running, sketching and swimming. This is her first play and she is loving it!!!! Everyone is nice and this is such a fun experience. She looks forward to doing more!

Vada Martens

Elf

Vada is 10 years old. She is a 5th grader at Cody Elementary. She loves to sing and play volleyball. Her mom, dad, brother, sister and grandma are her biggest supporters! She can’t wait for everyone to enjoy Elf The Musical! The cast has a lot of fun!

Gemma Long

Elf

Gemma likes drawing, writing, and cooking. She takes an art class at Adams, but besides that she is homeschooled.

Lucy Long

Elf

Lucy likes to play soccer and just started learning to play the violin. She likes to talk and be with my friends.

Braxton Westman

Boy at Macy’s

Braxton’s interest in theater was ignited by performing as Peter Pan in a homeschool play. He loves spending time outdoors practicing archery with his siblings and giant Labrador. Martial Arts is also a family activity, which Braxton enjoys!

Melody Barone

Tiara

Melody is a 6th grader who enjoys singing, playing basketball, and hanging out with her three dogs. She loves Jesus and serving on the host team at her church. This is her first musical at the NPCP, but hopes to have the opportunity to be in many more.

Ozzy Hansley

Charlie

Ozzy is making their debut in Elf the Musical. They’re currently a freshman at North Platte High School and has aspirations of attending the University of Arizona. Ozzy saw Hamilton at the Orpheum Theatre in Omaha, NE and it has been their favorite musical. Creating and animation have been passions of Ozzy for for many years.

Joe Sukraw

Fake Santa

Joe’s the father of four, grandfather of three, and husband of one. In September of 2024, Joe retired after 40 years in youth ministry. In April of 2025, Joe was invited to be part of the team at KJLT radio. This is his first time to perform on the Community Playhouse stage. Joe’s daughter, Hannah Lewis, encouraged him to perform with the fake Santas. Joe thought he could handle just one song until it came to learning the choreography…oh dear! Hope you enjoy the show!