About Czechmatters
Czechmatters is based in New York City and was founded by Suzanna Halsey as a multifaceted hub to promote interesting, inovative and top quality Czech artists, professionals, products, companies and organizations in the United States and the Czech Republic, and to offer Czech language and culture consulting services.
About Suzanna
Suzanna was born and educated in Czechoslovakia, and has lived and worked in New York for more than 30 years. Since her arrival in New York, she has worked as a Czech language specialist and teacher, studied filmmaking and for more than 6 years worked in the film/video industry as an editor. She became active in non-profit organizations, such as the Czechoslovak Society of Arts and Sciences (SVU-NY) and Friends of Czech Greenways, produced several multimedia shows, founded Ex Libris Czechoslovakia to promote Czech literature in English translation and coordinated the promotion of cultural and environmental preservation and sustainable tourism along the Czech Greenways.
Suzanna enjoys the cross-cultural matchmaking of ideas and people, and is always open to new challenges and experiences.
Recommendations
Project Coordinator
“I worked with Suzanna as a director of CzechTourism office in New York. I was inspired by her enthusiasm and energy promoting the Prague-Vienna Greenway project. Her organizational skills were especially impressive when we worked together with the Slovak, Polish and Hungarian National Tourist Offices on the Central European Greenways presentation for both travel press and trade. She is hands-on, hardworking, creative, pays attention to details and is definitely a people person always ready to help and throw in new ideas.”
Michaela Claudino, Director, CzechTourism
“Zuzana does an excellent job in development Friends of the Czech Greenway on the US side. She has been great support to Greenway parners in Central Europe, especially in the Czech Republic almost 20 years. She has always been very committed to the cause, enthusiastic, creative, and professional. She has excellent communication skills. Great pleasure to work with her.”
Miroslav Kundrata, Director, Czech Environmental Partnership Foundation
Czech Language Instructor
“Zuzana is a wonderful teacher and has an ability to make a very challenging language accessible and easy to learn. She also goes outside of the classroom, informing her students of events and creating opportunities to further explore the Czech culture and language. Because of her passion, I would love to continue my Czech studies with Zuzana as a private instructor.”
Caitlin Machak, Student, New York University
“Zuzana is one of the leading Czech-English translators in the world today. She is dynamic, appropriately demanding of self and others, and exacting in her work. I would recommend her enthusiastically and without reservation.”
Michael Beckerman, Chair, Music Department, New York University
“Suzanna was the only instructor I had to learn Czech. Thanks to her, I have read books by Kundera, Capek, and other authors in czech, and now I know what they are saying in operas by Dvorak and Janacek. She can handle introductory to advanced levels. She is personable, expert, creative.”
Masahiko Inui, private student
“Zuzana was a great Czech teacher. Very motivating and provided excellent feedback. I found her to be considerate, attentive, and creative in teaching a difficult language. I would gladly attend another one of her classes. Top qualities: Great Results, Personable, Expert”
Richard Gordon-Smith, NYU-SCPS Czech Course