Emily Behrmann is a renaissance woman. Her career in arts administration began at the Lyric Opera and Kansas City Symphony, and she eventually landed at Johnson County Community College where she’s been helping hold down the fort since 1991. Now as the general manager of JCCC’s famed Carlsen Center, Behrmann is responsible for booking “Carlsen Center Presents” branded events and managing her talented team handling day-to-day operations. “The Carlsen Center is still pretty young, as a presenting organization. We’re coming up on our 30th birthday in 2019, so I feel we’ve carved a unique niche for ourselves in the community,” says Behrmann. “We truly represent a strong program on the Kansas side, just as the Kauffman Center does for Kansas City. How lucky we are to have such a vibrant arts scene!”
With so many fab behind-the-scenes stories to tell—including her stint as a magician’s assistant (uh, don’t ask)—we knew she’d be able to dazzle us with five things we didn’t know about her. Game on!
5. “I sang in church and was involved in musical theater and light opera from the age of about 6 through college. Oh, and I studied voice at the Conservatory of Music and Dance at UMKC with Inci Bashar, a wonderful lady, phenomenal teacher and very well-respected mezzo-soprano.”
4. “I’m a hiker. My husband and I love Colorado and travel there in the summer for hiking vacations. We’ve bagged two 14-ers (14,000-foot peaks) so far and we’re on our way to more!”
3. “I love to bake, and I’ve recently become enamored of architectural bundt pans.”
2. “I’ve met many celebrities when they’ve performed at the Carlsen Center. I’m always impressed by their talent, of course, but also by how tiny they are. The men are never as tall as I expect them to be—except John Cleese. He’s 6’5”!”
1. “I love Star Trek, especially the original episodes. Kirk over Picard. Sorry TNG fans.”