Inside Gianni's, one of the finest restaurants in the Minneapolis area, proudly displayed on the wall in several immense frames, are collages of hundreds of signed playing cards that have over the course of several years found their way onto the ceiling. One might suppose the display is a salute to the talents of a great magician who has plied his trade in those environs - a magician held in phenomenally high regard. One would be correct, though "his trade" is "her trade". The magician is Suzanne.

At The Magic Castle, where Suzanne is often invited to perform, audiences are treated to a compelling entertainer who manages to combine powerful magic with a welcoming high-energy personality and captivating storytelling abilities, resulting in twenty minutes of miracles - only some of which can be explained by magical modus operandi. People don't like Suzanne when she performs, they love her. When Suzanne takes the stage, the typical persona of a magic performer is far, far away. Rather than adopt the currently popular character of a frantic used car salesman when performing magic, Suzanne is herself: feminine, funny, wise, direct and, above all, delighted to be performing for the audience. This core positively is contagious, and it radiates from Suzanne. She has the ability to take an existing effect and turn it into a piece that, once seen, will forever be associated with her. Her presentation of Joe Givens' Band Aid Transpo is an amusing and true reflection on parenthood - the transposition of a spectator's pain and a mother's love. It's a personal statement that gives a clever effect new focus, and huge impact. Suzanne doesn't just do magic, she understands what is magic.

Born to Baffle

Suzanne was raised in Battle Creek, Michigan. As a child she was attracted to puzzles and brainteasers, and played around with simple card tricks and effects. She even recalls taping a strand of her hair to the wall, and crumpling paper over it to make it appear to be floating (few people know that the "invisible thread" that now comes with so many marketed effects is actually Suzanne's hair). Her interest in puzzles led her, not illogically, to become a computer programmer, and this became her vocation for a time. Her reintroduction into magic has elements of serendipity that are magical in and of themselves: In 1982 she met her husband-to-be, Louis, a musician, who performed the Invisible Deck for her, and "just totally freaked me out." She then bumped into a man in her apartment complex who taught magic professionally at Abbott's. When she wanted to know how his effects were done, he refused to offer instruction...unless she wanted to become a professional performer. Suzanne laughed and said "Are you kidding? I'm a computer programmer!" That would change.

Shortly thereafter, while playing backgammon over her Commodore-64 computer with "some guy in Boston" (this is before the World Wide Web as we know it existed - she competed over a system called Play-net) Suzanne discovered this mystery man was a professional magician. When he learned of her interest, he suggested she check out the local magic club, and gave her contact information for the local S.A.M.. It turned out the next meeting was in two days. Suzanne was there, and it was at that meeting that she was introduced to a man who would be instrumental in turning Suzanne from a magic enthusiast into a student of close-up magic.

Spied Her. Fried Her. Schneider.

Al Schneider attended the S.A.M. gathering that day, and he promptly blew Suzanne away with his coin work. Al soon became her magic mentor and introduced her to fine sleight of hand. Suzanne was hooked. This meeting was fortuitous, as Al recalls, "It was at a magic meeting I rarely go to. During the meeting she approached me asking if I was teaching magic. At the time I was teaching private lessons. Fairly soon after that we got together once a week." Of Al's teaching methods, Suzanne says, "He pays attention to the smallest details. Everything is broken down into steps, and each step needs to be learned by the body, so each step is done over and over and over and over and over. He calls this 'drills'. After a while, my body caught on and I could do it without thinking. I really think that's the key to good sleight of hand magic. Being able to do every move without thinking."

Performing with Relish

Suzanne asked how she could start doing magic professionally. Al replied with advice as practical as any ever offered: "You need to learn three tricks well and then call on restaurants and get walk-around gigs." This is exactly what they set about doing, and soon Suzanne was performing Professor's Nightmare, Silver Extraction, and vanishing yarn in a thumb tip. Suzanne took it from there. She contacted twelve Ground Round restaurants, was interviewed by eight and hired by two. For months she performed her tricks three nights a week, four hours a night. Al, a detail-oriented teacher when it comes to the technical side of magic, not only appreciated Suzanne's level of skill, but also remarks, "Suzanne is a real trouper. She has the ability to talk with people as if they are old friends. She smiles and does the show biz stuff, but there is always a real person behind the smile."

It was while working the Ground Round restaurants, in 1984, that Suzanne first met Eugene Burger, who was lecturing in the area, and who ended up playing a pivotal role in guiding Suzanne's career. According to Suzanne, "I watched Eugene's lecture and was totally enchanted by him (who can watch him and not be enchanted). After the lecture I just walked up to him and told him I was working at a Ground Round doing table magic and I wanted to know how to get a better restaurant gig. He said in his wonderful voice, 'You just have to know someone in the restaurant business.'" With that, Eugene took out a business card and wrote down the name of a chef/entrepreneur with whom he'd worked for many years. This led to Suzanne being hired to perform at an upscale restaurant called The American Cafe, a gig that soon became her regular performance venue. I asked Eugene what it was about Suzanne that inspired a level of trust, as he'd never seen her perform. He said, "We talked and I liked her. I knew the name of someone who was instrumental in developing my opportunities in the restaurant field, who had recently moved to Minneapolis. I didn't know if she was good...but I sensed in her a deep wanting to do this. Because of her sincere desire I felt confident opening that door. People should be open to magical things happening to them. It's what I did for Suzanne. I opened a door for her, but it was up to her to walk through it." Since then, Eugene has had the opportunity to see Suzanne perform many times. He not only finds her charming, but is "a little awed by the choices she's made, such as the cups and balls she performs in a restaurant setting, which is wonderful."

Castles & Corporations

Suzanne soon was working several restaurants. Her repertoire grew, as well as the individuality she brought to performance, and eventually Al Schneider contacted The Magic Castle to tell them one of his students was "ready". She was booked for Halloween Week in 1988, and was nervous - this was the magic Big Time, what if Dai Vernon came to see her show? He did come. At the end of her set, when everyone else had left, The Professor just sat there, leaning on his cane. Suzanne had no idea what this meant. She thought she was going to be ejected from The Castle. Vernon slowly stood up, smiled, made the okay sign and left the room. He came to see her show three times.

Suzanne created such an impression in her restaurant work, that if a restaurant closed, as they sometimes do, the management would immediately re-hire her when they opened a new night spot. As the class of restaurants improved, so did the quality of her outside gigs - parties and events thrown by patrons of the restaurants. Soon Suzanne was being asked to perform at corporate functions. Lisa Menna makes her living in the corporate environment. Of Suzanne, she says this: "The first time I saw Suzanne perform at a trade show, I smiled and thought finally the competition has arrived. I think Suzanne is the best female sleight of hand artist in America today. She is well studied in the art and has the skills and experience to approach her performance like a musician approaches Jazz. Her style is rooted in her heart - she is bright eyed, attractive and fun. She can hold an audience without her magic. Suzanne is more than likable; she personifies charisma. She makes shy people shine and bold people laugh. I love watching her work."

The Dream Job

In 1995, the restaurant management opened Gianni's, where Suzanne currently performs. She never approaches tables - the staff does that for her. She never asks for tips - the staff does that for her, too. She makes her own schedule - she can take days off for other opportunities or conventions. When Suzanne is absent, the management does not put in "another magician", they simply have a day without Suzanne. She was now a fixture in a top restaurant, with a growing reputation in the magic community. She greatly valued the fact that she was being taken seriously as a magician, and accepted in the community not as a girl, but as a peer.

Another fan of Suzanne's is Max Maven, whom Suzanne occasionally turns to for a valued opinion. Max offers this: "What sets Suzanne apart more than anything else it that she has managed to find things to incorporate into her work that are not only unique to a female performer, but that are unique to her, to Suzanne. Many of the routines I have observed her performing are in some way autobiographical. When I watch Suzanne do a piece about motherhood, that's terrific, exhilarating and something that I can absolutely appreciate as not only wonderful artistic expression, but a routine that I will never be able to do, and that's great, because part of what an artist does, at least theoretically, is to deliver ideas and experiences to the audience that widen the audience members' perception of the world. Suzanne has certainly done that...and she's a hottie [laughter]."

The Magic of Suzanne

During the 1990's, Suzanne developed cancer, which unfortunately went undetected for years. When it was finally discovered, the necessary treatments were intrusive, eliminating any chance of performing for months. The staff of Gianni's helped her through her period of recuperation, offering support and friendship. Suzanne survived, and the positive force she projects with her magic has not dropped an iota. She says "My spiritual path inspires my magical path. Many of my effects have elements of my spiritual path woven in. Not in an in-your-face manner (I hope), but it's there."

What Suzanne loves most about magic is not a particular effect, sleight or gimmick, it's "the connections you can make with other people." She loves "the moment when I can see magic in the eyes of the audience. That brief moment when they believe in Santa Claus again." See her perform once, and you'll see it happen, and with such grace it appears effortless.

Magic is the unlikely and improbable. It is an amazing and wonderful force that fills us with joy and delight. Suzanne is magic.