Stellaluna and Other Tales

Katy Kepler (Stellaluna) is from Rochester, New York and has most recently appeared at the Rose as a Squirrelle in Elephant & Piggie's We Are In A Play. She has also played Dr. Exercise in the Rose’s touring production of The Super Adventures of Nutrition Woman and Dr. Exercise and was an ensemble member in A Palette of Possibility. Other favorite performance credits include Dracula (Geva Theatre Center/EMC), A Christmas Carol (Geva Theatre Center/EMC), Orestes 2.0 (Bread and Water Theatre), Crocodile Fear (College at Brockport; world premiere), The Turtle Play (College at Brockport; Workshop) and Lysistrata: A Woman's Translation (College at Brockport).

Colleen Kilcoyne (Pinduli) returns to The Rose mainstage after her performance in The Rose's production of "Shrek The Musical." She recently returned from an internship with the National Association of Play Therapy, India in Bangalore, India and is currently working as a Rose Theater Teaching Artist Fellow. She has recently appeared at The Rose in "Honk!," at Creighton University as Sally Bowles in "Cabaret" (TAG Award Nomination, OEA Nomination), Percy Talbott in "The Spitfire Grill," Carlotta in "Phantom," Leonata in "Much Ado About Nothing," and Penelope Pennywise in "Urinetown." She was also featured as a soloist for the Marvin Hamlisch Tribute with the Omaha Symphony, performing “At the Ballet” with Donna McKechnie and Jodie Benson.

Robby (Verdi) is excited to be back at The Rose Theater. He has been in "Shrek The Musical," "Prancer," "Honk," "A Christmas Story," "Jackie & Me," "The Cat in the Hat" and "Big Nate – The Musical." Robby has played Peter Cratchit, Topper, and Jake in "A Christmas Carol" at the Omaha Community Playhouse. He has also performed in musicals for St. Bernadette, Bellevue Little Theater, Ralston Community Theater, and Burke High school. At Burke High School, he was drama club president, assistant and student directed plays, and tried to involve himself in everything that had to do with the arts. He thanks his friends and especially his parents for being so supportive and helpful with achieving his dreams.

Tyrone Beasley (Lion, et al) is The Rose Theater's Artistic Associate – Director of Outbound Programing. No stranger to the stage Tyrone has worked with acclaimed directors: Peter Sellars (The Merchant of Venice, It is Now Our Time), Claude Purdy (Jitney), Charles Marowitz (Shakespeare), David Wheeler (The Trials of Ezra Pound) and Antonio Banderas (Crazy in Alabama), among others. Tyrone has performed in many theaters around the globe including The Goodman Theatre (Chicago), Victory Gardens Theatre (Chicago), Thalia Theater (Hamburg, Germany), MC93 Bobigny (Paris, France) and The Royal Shakespeare Company (London, England). He has worked in front of the camera and behind the scenes in post-production on film and television projects for Disney, Fox, Sony, VH1, TriStar Pictures and the BBC. An Omaha Benson High School graduate, Tyrone earned a BFA in studio arts from the University of Nebraska at Omaha. He attended California State University, Long Beach for graduate study in theater arts, taught acting classes there as a teaching associate and was an ensemble member of California Repertory Company. Tyrone served as the Artistic Director at The John Beasley Theater (JBT) in Omaha for ten years, he managed and taught the theater’s workshop programs that were a part of JBT’s mission of community outreach and developing a local pool of trained actors. He also acted in and directed numerous plays at the JBT.

Caulene hails from Fruitland Park, Florida. She graduated in 2013 from Flagler College with a Bachelor’s in Communication (focus cinema and media studies) and Theatre Arts. Since graduation, she freelanced as a director, scenic artist and teaching artist in Pennsylvania and Alabama. Caulene arrived in Omaha in 2014 as a Teaching Artist Fellow with The Rose Theater, where she happily worked for the past two years. Currently, she is a part time teaching artist with The Rose and pursuing her Masters in Theatre Management at UNO. Some favorite theatrical projects include: "Prancer," "Sherlock Holmes and the First Baker Street Irregular" (Wiggins; world premiere at The Rose Theater), "Walk the Night: Visions of Shadows" (Lysandra; immersive theatre project presented by the Blue Barn Theatre), and "A Child’s Garden of Verses" (Actor 4/Musician; theatre for the very young presentation at the Rose Theater). Caulene debuted as a puppeteer in The Rose's world premiere of "Prancer," and is excited to continue her puppeteering work in "Stellaluna."

Ty Hebbert (Dog/Umbles/Pip) is from Gering, Nebraska, and recently graduated from the University of Wyoming with a degree in vocal performance. He was seen on The Rose mainstage this season in "Goodnight Moon." Past performances include Uncle Fester in "The Addams Family," Enjolras in "Les Misérables," Mitch Mahoney in "25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee," and Le Fou in "Beauty and the Beast." Goodnight and joy be to you all!

Madison Marie Hoge grew up performing at the Rose and is delighted to be returning after ten years! She recently graduated from the University of Nebraska Kearney with a Bachelors of Music in Musical Theatre. Regional credits include: "She Loves Me" (ensemble), "Shrek" (Gingy), "Footloose" (Urleen), "Drinking Habits" (Sister Augusta) and many more. God bless and enjoy the show!

Michael Miller (Director) has been a member of The Rose staff since 2011, having previously worked for Macon State College, Mercer University, Omaha Children’s Museum, Omaha Performing Arts, El Museo Latino, and Omaha Boys and Girls Clubs. Michael is a Master Teacher with the Nebraska Arts Council’s Artists-in-Schools program with a focus on creative drama and design residencies. He has an undergraduate degree from Yale University and a Masters degree in Non-Profit Management from UNO. He directed "Mouse on the Move" for The Rose's Pre-K series this season. He has also directed Leo Lionni’s "Frederick" on the mainstage and has directed for the Teens ‘N’ Theater season, performed in Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse, James and the Giant Peach, and the national tours of Frog and Toad, Richard Scarry’s BusyTown, and Treasure Island.