Christine Yundem
TICKET OFFICE MANAGER | NEXT ACT THEATER
Actors and directors are important, but it’s the ticket office that truly talks to theatergoers. And Christine Yundem has perhaps helped more people into seats than anyone in Milwaukee, starting with the inaugural season of the now Marcus Performing Arts Center in 1969.
“People have a trust in ticket people,” she says. “They’ll call you and ask the most off-the-wall thing.” But Yundem, who now manages the ticket office at Next Act Theatre, has answers. She gives show recs, seating advice, accessibility support and more, while making sure everyone feels heard. “I have often said that the nicest people come to theater, and I still believe that.”
Tell us who you’d pick to be a Betty this year!
Mauree Childress
DOCENT CHAIR | MILWAUKEE ART MUSEUM
Mauree Childress sees art as a big adventure, one she brings others on. The retiree is one of over 130 docents who volunteer to give tours at MAM. It’s a commitment: five years minimum starting with a year of training, she says. “It takes a lot of time to develop that confidence … to be able to talk with students or adults about [art].” But those conversations, opening young eyes to art, are a joy. “What a wonderful thing to realize that you can belong in such a beautiful space.”
Gabi Sustache
STUDIO EDUCATION DIRECTOR | DANCEWORKS MKE
Gabi Sustache wears many hats at Danceworks MKE. She teaches youth and adult classes at the studio, public schools and senior centers. She manages the studio’s class schedule. She also dances professionally with Danceworks on Tap. This dedication makes sense when you learn Sustache practically grew up at Danceworks; her mother is the late co-founder Amy Brinkman-Sustache. “Seeing her teaching classes and rehearsing … was definitely a big inspiration,” she says. Her favorite moments are seeing that same love of dance spark within students. “Whether those students really acknowledge [their appreciation] and say it verbally, we definitely can see it as instructors.”
JJ Kaiser
TALENT BUYER | X-RAY ARCADE
JJ Kaiser didn’t start out looking to book concerts; the concerts found him. When a DIY venue closed in 2016, several shows rescheduled in Kaiser’s basement, where he had once hosted his own band. “People started hitting me up, asking to book shows for their bands, and I accidentally became a promoter,” he says. Now a full-time talent buyer at Cudahy’s X-Ray Arcade, he fills a much-desired niche of metal, punk and emo. Kaiser cites his annual sell-out emo fest Burn Bright MKE (Feb. 21-22) as a favorite part of his work. That, and building up bands and watching them grow over the years. “It makes me feel like a proud dad.”
