Noted by the Chicago Tribune for being “…especially deft at those dual actor/musician duties,” Suzanne Hannau (née Gillen, she/her) maintains an active career as a freelance performer and teacher in the Chicagoland area. She earned her BM(’11) and MM (’13) in Flute Performance from DePaul University, studying with Mary Stolper and Jennifer Clippert. Suzanne is passionate about combining different performance arts in a production and is always looking for opportunities to combine instrumental doubling with movement, acting, and singing.
Suzanne performs as a freelance artist around the city of Chicago. Suzanne has been on stage and in the pit orchestras for various theaters in the Chicago area, most recently as “Rosie Cotton” in THE LORD OF THE RINGS: A MUSICAL TALE at the Civic Theater in Auckland, New Zealand; this is a continutation of her recent engagement at Chicago Shakespeare Theater. Previous actor/musician work includes Court Theatre in THE DEAD (“Lily”) and SECRET GARDEN (“Robin”), and subbing as the flutist in THE MATCHBOX MAGIC FLUTE at The Goodman Theatre. As a singer, Suzanne can be heard at weddings throughout the Chicagoland area. She is the soprano section leader at St. Michael’s Catholic Church in Old Town.
Suzanne is an invigorating, challenging, and encouraging teacher. She teaches at the Music Institute of Chicago and in her private studio in Lincoln Park. She also runs a successful early childhood music program as a certified and licensed Musikgarten teacher. By celebrating individual milestones in student successes, she encourages her students of all ages to enjoy the actual process of learning, rather than to only focus on the results of practice.