Lauren Caldwell* (Multiple roles, A Tuna Christmas)

Lauren is the Hippodrome’s Artistic Director. Prior to becoming Artistic Director (10 th Season), she held the positions of Director of Education and Artistic Associate. She actually began her relationship with the Hippodrome as an actress in 1988. Lauren has been directing theatre for over twenty years with a diverse list of plays too numerous to mention. As a playwright, Lauren has written six produced, original pieces. Her adaptation of Rudyard Kipling’s Just So Stories was produced for the Hippodrome Mainstage and premiered in the summer of 1997. Her Theatre for Young Audiences pieces include To Be Or Not To Be... That Is Two Questions, Radio Active, and The Wonderful Wizard Of Art. Each of these pieces, geared toward public school-aged youth, found a home in the Alachua County School Systems and then went on to statewide tours. She remains dedicated to the development of theatre for the young people of our world. During the 2003-2004 season, her adaptation of War Of The Worlds was produced on the Hippodrome Mainstage. Most recently, Lauren wrote a play entitled Red! Red! Red! Or What Does The Future Hold? for the teens who participated in the Hippodrome’s yearly Summer Spectacular program. Lauren has served as an Adjunct Faculty member with the University of Florida School of the Arts and an American College Theatre Festival (ACTF) adjudicator. She is the founder and owner of Legal Acts, a company dedicated to the training and trial preparation of courtroom attorneys. This business has recently expanded beyond the city and county lines. She has a ten year affiliation with the University of Florida Law School. Lauren was featured as Artist of the Year in TheGainesville Sun as well as numerous publications throughout the state. She has a BFA in Directing from Baylor University and a MFA in Acting from the University of Florida . She is a political activist and humanitarian. Lauren is a native Texan.

Mark Chambers * (Multiple roles, A Tuna Christmas)

Mark returns for the fifth year of A Tuna Christmas here at the Hippodrome. In seasons past he appeared in The Santaland Diaries, Dracula, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Macbeth, Hysteria, The Sisters Rose nsweig , Bat Boy: The Musical, and as Hedwig in Hedwig and the Angry Inch. Recently Mark was honored with a Watermark 2005 Wave award for his outstanding performance as the German transvestite and medal of honor winner Charlotte Von Mahlsdorf, in I Am My Own Wife at the American Stage. Please visit his webpage at www.mark-chambers.com for more information. As a visual artist, Mark’s monkey portraits are growing in number, and have appeared in group shows in San Francisco as well as here in the Hipp lobby and the UF Reitz Union colonnade. May the joy of Christmas past bring all of those we have lost this year closer to our hearts, especially Alan Bryant Chambers.

Mary Hausch * (Director, A Tuna Christmas)

Mary is a Hippodrome founder and has directed over 100 productions and acted in 50 productions in her 32 years with the theatre. She wrote and directed An Enchanted Land which won Best of the Fringe at the Edinburgh Festival in Scotland in 1999. Her adaptation of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol has warmed the hearts of audience members for the past 9 years. Directorial accomplishments include Anna in the Tropics, Rounding Third, Life x 3, The Carpetbagger’s Children, Stones in His Pockets, Proof, Dinner with Friends, Hysteria, ‘Art,’ God’s Man in Texas, Three Tall Women, Lonely Planet, Earthly Possessions, Marvin’s Room, M. Butterfly, Les Liaisons Dangereuses, For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf, and True West. She worked with Pulitzer Prize winner Paula Vogel on her play The Mineola Twins before the NYC production at the Roundabout Theatre. She directed a PBS teleplay based on David Mamet’s The Duck Variations. Mary has served with the National Endowment for the Arts and the Florida Division of Cultural Affairs as a panelist and reviewer. She was the recipient of the Margaret Sanger Award in 1987 for founding of the HITT (Hippodrome Improvisational Teen Theatre) program, the Gainesville Sun’s Star Business Award in 1991, the Gainesville Sun’s Arts Person of the Year Award in 1993, and the National Park Service Award for her work with the Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Historical Site on An Enchanted Land in 1998. She was selected as one of 50 men and women of “notable achievement” in the past 100 years by the Gainesville Sun in 2000 and as The Woman of the Arts by the Gateway Girl Scout Council in 2001. She received the Volunteer of the Year Award in 2003 from the Florida International Volunteer Corps (FAVACA) for creating a HITT pilot program in the Caribbean .In 2004, theFlorida Professional Theatre Association honored Hausch with the Richard G. Fallon Award for Excellence in Professional Theatre.

Sara Morsey (Director, A Christmas Carol)

Sara made her Hippodrome debut in the early 1990’s in Earthly Possessions directed by Mary Hausch . That same season she played Bella in Lost in Yonkers directed by Lauren Caldwell . This began a long collaboration including roles in Broken Glass, The Illusion, The Sisters Rose nsweig , The Lion In Winter, The Glass Menagerie, Private Eyes, Dinner with Friends, All in the Timing, Misery, Closer, The Carpetbagger’s Children, Master Class, Three Tall Women, and many more. A regional theatre actor for more than twenty years, Sara has had long associations with a number of regional theatres throughout the country, but is proud to call Gainesville home. Her international credits include Mary Hausch ’s An Enchanted Land in Edinburgh , Scotland ’s Fringe Festival and Ani Collier’s Sex Female in Sofia , Bulgaria . Sara has appeared in several independent films and has served as a narrator for the Library of Congress’ Talking Books series. This summer Sara played “Stevie” in Edward Albee’s The Goat at Circuit Playhouse in Memphis . American premieres include Mrs. Klein (American Stage, St. Petersburg ), Autumn Sonata (Pegasus Rising, Louisville ), In The Attic (DANCE ALIVE, Gainesville ) and War of the Worlds (Hippodrome). This is Sara’s fifth season to direct A Christmas Carol.

Armando Acevedo*

After disposing of the dreaded vampire as Jonathan Harker in thirty-nine performances of Dracula, Armando Acevedo is relieved and delighted to spread the holiday cheer as Fred in A Christmas Carol. He made his Hippodrome debut earlier this year as the unfaithful Palomo in Anna in the Tropics, and he spent all summer shake-shake-shaking his bootie in 8-Track: The Sounds of the 70’s. Armando received his MFA in Theatre from the California Institute of the Arts after completing his undergraduate degree in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Miami . He has worked for the Walt Disney Company in California , in Florida and in France and currently lives in Los Angeles , where he moonlights as a singer in Russian nightclubs. Visit him at www.armandoacevedo.com

Garrett Bantom

Garrett is pleased to return to the Hippodrome stage in Christmas Carol. He was recently seen in Dracula and Mere Mortals, after completing his MFA training at the University of Florida . He would like to thank Actor’s Equity for the membership candidate program. He would like to thank Mary, Rocky, Lauren, Kim D., Tamerin, the Hippodrome family, and Sara Morsey for her support. He would like to thank God for his family, and their continuing support. “You know me, all I want for Christmas is to see you kids”- My grandfather. God bless us everyone, Merry Christmas.

Nolan Carey

N olan is happy to be making his debut at the Hippodrome State Theatre . He is currently in his final year of the BFA Acting program at the University of Florida . In his fourteen years of living in Gainesville he has been seen in several plays including, but not limited to, Hamlet (Polonius) and The Taming of the Shrew (Vincentio’s-second-servant-to-the-left-holding-the-shrubbery). He thanks his family, friends and beautiful fiancée Vicki .

Marty Austin Lamar

Marty Austin Lamar is a first year graduate student at the University of Florida working on his MFA in acting. He was recently seen in the University of Florida ’s production of Hamlet as King’s Ghost. He is elated to make his debut at the Hipp. This is truly a blessing! Thank you family and friends for your continued support.

Gregory Jones *

Gregg returns to the Hipp for his tenth run of A Christmas Carol in the role of Jacob Marley. He has performed on the Hippodrome stage since the fabled “warehouse” days where he first appeared in They Shoot Horses Don’t They? during the 1978-79 season. Since then, he has played various roles in more than 40 shows at the theatre. Previous roles on this stage include Tom in Dinner With Friends, Salvador Dali in Hysteria, Adrian in Private Eyes, Leslie, Phyllis and Tom in Sylvia, and Sid Caesar in Laughter on the 23rd Floor. Gregg also appeared in the role of Lord Montague in Romeo & Juliet and Detective Nick Rose tti in the record-breaking run of Shear Madness. Film and television credits include Waterways, She Loves Me, She Loves Me Not, and Miami Vice. He is also one of two actors who appear in two or more Victor Nunez films; A Flash of Green and Coastlines. Gregg is currently a tenured professor of Theatre at Santa Fe Community College , where he has been a faculty member for the past 18 years.

Emilee MacDonald

Emilee MacDonald is pleased to be returning to the Hippodrome Stage. She was last seen as Mrs. Cratchit in the 2004 production. Other Hippodrome roles include Benvolio in Romeo and Juliet, Margot in the Diary of Anne Frank, The Ghost of Christmas Present in A Christmas Carol, Dorothy in The Wonderful…..Wizard of Art, and Ophelia in To Be or Not To Be, That is Two Questions. Emilee is also the Hippodrome’s Director of Development.

Loren Omer

Loren Omer is a Gainesville native who grew up watching A Christmas Carol as part of her family’s holiday tradition. She is thrilled to be once again part of such a wonderful production. In previous years she’s played both Belle and Martha Cratchit in A Christmas Carol. Loren Omer was more recently seen on the Hippodrome stage as Miss Wells in Dracula. Some of her favorite roles have included The Witch from Into the Woods, Antigone in Antigone, and Alais from The Lion In Winter. Loren is lucky to have an amazing family and would like to thank them for their love and support.

Nicole Orsua

Nicole Orsua is a native to California where she received her B.A. in Theatre Arts at San Diego State University . She left the west coast for the first time last March to move to Gainesville and has worked at the Hippodrome since June. She is thrilled to be making her professional debut in A Christmas Carol and thanks the Hipp’s Staff & Steve for their support.

Nell Page *

Nell has been an Associate Artist with the Hippodrome State Theatre for 32 years. She has appeared in more than sixty roles including Mrs. Gibbs in Our Town, Inez in Life x 3, Grace Anne in The Carpetbagger’s Children, Beth in Dinner with Friends, Alexa Vere De Vere in As Bees in Honey Drown, Jean Louise French in To Kill a Mockingbird, La Marquise de Merteuill in Les Liaisons Dangereuses, and Charlotte Corday in Marat/Sade.

Josh Patterson

Josh will be graduating from University of Florida ’s Theatre education program just as Carol is ending and would like to thank everyone involved in his education and training. Josh spent most of his time at University of Florida backstage and was last seen as the tailor in Taming of the Shrew in 2004. More recently he spent the summer in Utah performing in Guys and Dolls, Godspell, Oscar, and Some Like it Hot.

Denis McCourt

Denis is a first year MFA Acting Major and so proud to be involved with the Hippodrome Family (ALL OF YOU) and t he great work being done on the stage and in the Educational Outreach Programs! A professional film, commercial and theatre actor by trade…Denis, is here taking the time to further develop his craft with the generous faculty and “Baker’s Dozen” at the University of Florida . Love to Leon, Mom, Dad and Stryjewski Clan. God Bless Us…Everyone!

Rusty Salling *

Rusty has appeared in 87 productions at the Hippodrome, most recently as Klinglehoff in The Underpants. He has appeared in all 28 productions of A Christmas Carol, the last sixteen in the role of Ebenezer Scrooge. Previous appearances include Macbeth, Master Class, Frankenstein, The Rocky Horror Show, A Streetcar Named Desire, To Kill A Mockingbird, All in the Timing, Lonely Planet, The Sisters Rose nsweig , Lost in Yonkers, West Side Story, Lettice and Lovage, Accomplice, Rumors, Driving Miss Daisy, The Boys Next Door, Absent Friends, Noises Off, Season’s Greetings, Amadeus and The Elephant Man, as well as the title roles in The Norman Conquests, The Dresser, and Cyrano de Bergerac. He toured the Southeast, including 11 Florida prisons, in Waiting for Godot and has appeared in two films: A Flash of Green and The Savage Hunt. Additionally, he is the Hippodrome’s Computer Geek-in-Residence and Webmaster of the Hippodrome internet site, http://thehipp.org.

Christine Sellers *

Christine Sellers was born in Landstuhl , Germany and is a graduate of University of Florida with a MFA in Acting. She was last seen at the Hippodrome in Mere Mortals. Theatre: Barbara Ehrenreich’s Nickel and Dimed (Gail), Steve Martin’s The Underpants (Louise), Picasso at Lapine Agile (Germaine), Anton Chekov’s The Seagull (Nina), Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House (Nora), Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet (Juliet), and Larry Shue’s The Foreigner(Catherine). TV: “NBA” national commercial, “Law & Order” and “Guiding Light.” Film: Surviving Christmas, Insanity, and Pink Panther. Thank you Sara, for entrusting me with this role. Love to my family.

Rhonda Wilson

R honda is excited to return to the Hippodrome stage. She has been seen in several productions. Her favorite roles include Rose in Fences, Princess Winnifred in Once Upon a Mattress and Deena in Dreamgirls. Her debut at the Hippodrome was in the drama To Kill a Mockingbird. She would like to thank all the kids at the Star Center who love and support the arts. Special thanks to the cast and crew for another great holiday show!

Lizz Nehls*

This is Lizz’s 3 rd season with the Hippodrome as the Stage Manager. Before returning to the Hippodrome, Lizz lived, worked, & played in NYC for 4 years. She was also an Adjunct Professor at the University of Florida in Stage Management. Peace & Love!

Amber Wilkerson*

Stage Manager, A Christmas Carol

This season’s A Christmas Carol marks Amber’s first production as a member of the Actor’s Equity Association. She has spent two full seasons at the Hippodrome, first as a Properties intern, then as Assistant Stage Manager. Since leaving the Hipp in May, she has worked for The Metropolitan Opera ( New York City ) and The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey ( Madison , NJ ). Amber has also worked professionally for the North Shore Music Theatre ( Beverly , MA ) and the Henlopen Theatre Project ( Lewes , DE ). Originally from Maryland , she received a B.A. in Theatre Arts from Salisbury University in 2002. Amber wishes to thank everyone at the Hippodrome for their constant love, support, and encouragement, and also for welcoming her back into the family.

Marilyn A. Wall

Costume Designer

Marilyn Wall is a co-founder of the Hippodrome, where she is Artistic Associate, and Costume Designer-in-Residence. She has designed and built costumes for more than 350 professional productions for the stage and for film. Her stage designs have been seen in San Diego, Boston, Denver, Connecticut, New York, Alabama, Massachusetts, and Toronto, and in the film world she has designed costumes and makeup for: A Flash of Green, with Ed Harris; Shimmer, with MaryBeth Hurt; Ruby in Paradise, with Ashley Judd; Gathering Evidence, with Angelina Jolie; Miami Hustle, with Kathy Ireland; and Ulee’s Gold, with Peter Fonda and Patricia Richardson. Ms. Wall has also served as a designer for Phil Donahue, Bill Clinton, Al Gore, Todd Field, Joan Steffend, Scott Simon, and Travis Tritt, and is a two-time Emmy Award winner for her design work on Salsa, a national television children’s series. She received an Audelco Award nomination for her original costume design for Cookin’ at the Cookery and a Beverly Hills/Hollywood Theatre Award nomination for Best Costume Design. She is presently designing puppets and costumes for a new children’s television series called OrganWise Guys.

Robert P. Robins

Lighting Designer

Bob has been Lighting Designer-in-Residence/Audio Production at the Hippodrome for more than 20 years. During this time, Bob has designed the lighting for more than 210 productions. He has also Stage Managed numerous productions including Hippodrome Mainstage, and various State and Building Audiences for Tom orrow tours. In addition to designing and Stage Managing, Bob also engineers the soundtracks and sound reinforcement for Hippodrome productions. He has designed a safety training program for the Hippodrome and trains all new employees in workplace safety, hazardous materials, and worker compensation laws. Bob has designed more than 335 productions regionally including theatre, dance, and industrials. He does consulting work for many different groups and venues, and presents classes and workshops for a wide variety of organizations. He is an Actors’ Equity Association Stage Manager and a member of IATSE Local 115.

Lorelei Esser

Properties Designer

Lorelei has been designing properties for the Hippodrome since the 1994 production of Earthly Possessions. She has long been recognized in our community for her accomplishments and contributions as an independent artist. Her medium, the collection and assemblage of “the stuff of life” can now be experienced in the sets of the Hippodrome productions. Lorelei’s understanding of time periods, cultures, the writer’s intentions, the director’s vision along with her tenacity for detail bring artistry to the craft of properties design. She worked in production on Victor Nunez’ forthcoming film, Coastlines. Lorelei is the Hippodrome Gallery Curator.

Michael A. Eaddy

Technical Director/Production Manager

Michael joined the Hippodrome staff in July 2000 and worked on over 18 mainstage productions as Master Carpenter. In January 2002, Michael was appointed Technical Director/Production Manager and continues to serve the Hippodrome in that capacity. Michael is also known in the area for his fine woodworking and photography which can be found in galleries throughout Georgia , North Carolina and Florida . Michael ' s first set design for the Hippodrome was 2 Pianos, 4 Hands.

Rocky Draud

Sound Designer - A Christmas Carol

Rocky has designed sound for Hippodrome productions for the past 24 years. Since the theatre’s production of Sleuth, he has created innovative sound designs for over 60 productions. His recent credits include 2 Pianos, 4 Hands, Rounding Third, Life x3, Shear Madness, The Carpetbagger’s Children, Stones in His Pockets, Proof, Dinner with Friends, ‘Art’, God’s Man in Texas, The Mineola Twins, M. Butterfly, Private Eyes, Lonely Planet, and Three Tall Women. Rocky has also been seen on stage in the Hippodrome productions of Always…Patsy Cline as the bass player in the Bodacious Bobcats and the band of Beehive. He is also the co-designer of the web site for the theatre’s Hippodrome Improvisational Teen Theatre (HITT) which you can visit at HITT.org. It is a drug and substance abuse prevention on-line resource center for teens available on Worldwide Web.

Douglas Maxwell

Sound Designer - A Tuna Christmas

Douglas is currently working in New York City as a freelance pianist and music director. His most recent projects have been with the NYU Graduate Acting Program, and with the independent theatre group Raw Impressions. He was last scene (pun intended) in the hallowed halls of the Hipp playing the piano for I Love You, You’re Perfect… with his much more talented sister on the violin, and before that had the pleasure of music directing Beehive, Always… Patsy Cline, and Rocky Horror Picture Show, in addition to creating numerous soundscapes for a variety of shows including To Kill a Mockingbird, Dracula, and A Streetcar Named Desire.

James Morgan

Scenic Designer - A Tuna Christmas

Jim is the Artistic Director of Manhattan’s acclaimed York Theatre Company, where he has spent 25 years creating more than 90 designs, including No Way to Treat a Lady, for which he received a Drama Desk Award nomination, and The Show Goes On. Broadway credits include Sweeney Todd (York’s revival, Drama Desk nomination); the musical Anna Karenina (American Theatre Wing Design nomination); The Miser, Taking Steps, and Getting Married, to name a few. He has created designs for national companies including On the 20th Century and TheSunshine Boys. Off-Broadway designs include Pacific Overtures, After the Fair, Broadway Jukebox and The Night Larry Kramer Kissed Me. Directing credits include the Hippodrome’s As Bees in Honey Drown, Oh Coward!, Falsettoland (Carbonell Award, Best Director and Best Musical), the premiere of Clark Gesner’s The Jello is Always Red and the Hippodrome’s 1996 production of Sylvia. Recent design projects: Cy Coleman’s new musical Exactly Like You (Goodspeed), Rags (Coconut Grove and Papermill Playhouse) and directing and designing Taking a Chance on Love. A Florida native, University of Florida Graduate and recipient of the H.P. Constans Award, he lives in Manhattan .

Carlos Francisco Asse

Scenic Designer - A Christmas Carol

Carlos is the owner of CarMar Productions Corporation, a Gainesville , FL company that specializes in architectural decorative painting and scenic design and fabrication. He was born in Jibacoa del Norte, Habana , Cuba . Mr. Asse holds a Bachelor of Architecture degree from the University of Florida , where he also had extensive theatre training. For 15 years, he was Designer-in-Residence and Associate Artistic Director at the Hippodrome Theatre, where he created environments for over 130 productions and directed such plays as Biloxi Blues, Broadway Bound, The Boys Next Door, Evita, Rumors, Romance/Romance, Lend Me a Tenor, Dancing at Lughnasa, Breaking Legs and West Side Story. He was also designer for the world premieres of Tennessee Williams’ Tiger Tail, Cynthia Buchanan’s Cabrona and Adrian Mitchell’s Man Friday at the Hippodrome and Richard N. Nash’s The Torch at the University of Florida . He has been an invited artist at theatres across the state. At the University of Florida he has been back to design Home and Romeo and Juliet. At Florida Stage in Manalapan, he has designed the Florida premieres for Lonely Planet and The Adjustment. At Theatre Winter Heaven he designed The Elephant Man, Morning’s at Seven and Amadeus, for Dance Alive he designed their ballets of Romeo and Juliet and Ghosts, for Gainesville Ballet Theatre Alice’s Adventures. In the film industry he was Art Director for Victor Nunez’s A Flash of Green with Ed Harris and Blair Brown. The Florida Division of Cultural Affairs awarded him an Individual Artist Fellowship Grant for his excellence in scenic design, and he has served three years on the theatre panel of the DCA, Florida Department of State. Carlos has worked as Production Designer for the award winning educational TV children’s series Salsa produced at the Georgia Public Broadcasting studios in Atlanta , Georgia . He was awarded three Southern Regional Emmies for his work on this series for the years 1998, 1999 and 2000. He wishes to dedicate his work in this production to his three sons: Juan Carlos, Marcos and MiguelAngel.