Geneva · Lake Geneva · French-speaking Switzerland
For galas, conferences and lakeside receptions.
From a delegates’ reception in the Nations district to a gala dinner by the lake, Isma Zmerli performs close-up magic and interactive mentalism across Geneva, in English or French.
5.0 on Google (500+ reviews) · IvAlive charity gala 2025 in Geneva · Reply within 24 hours, no commitment.
Three formats for an international crowd
Geneva brings diplomats, private bankers, commodity traders, watchmakers and scientists into the same rooms, often with several nationalities at each table. What works there is magic people experience rather than translate, placed at the right moment: arrival, dinner or the final reveal.
Welcome drinks
A ring borrowed from a delegate, a word chosen in silence, a card only one guest has seen: Isma works a few centimetres from your guests and moves between English and French from one group to the next.
Suited to diplomatic receptions and client cocktails.
Galas and charity nights
Between two courses or just before the bidding opens, a mentalism sequence of 20 to 45 minutes gathers the whole ballroom around one mystery: a few volunteers on stage, every table following the outcome.
Ask the venue for a wireless microphone and a clear stage area.
Science, finance, innovation
In a canton that is home to CERN and Campus Biotech, Isma, an artificial intelligence engineer, pits the audience’s instinct against a model’s predictions. A playful way into risk and decision-making, close to his AI magic show.
For leadership seminars, conventions and innovation days.
Tell Isma about your audience and running order: he will help you choose, with no commitment. For a company event, see also corporate magician and mentalist.
A Geneva reference
Charity galas, international company evenings, private receptions: here is one Geneva event Isma took part in.
October 2025 · Geneva
For its third charity gala dinner, the IvAlive Foundation brought several hundred guests together in Geneva, with Kadebostany as headliner. The evening raised nearly ₴8.5 million (hryvnias) to support Ukrainians in need.
The programme included a children’s choir, a charity auction of 11 lots run by Piguet Hôtel des Ventes, a contemporary dance performance and Isma Zmerli’s magic. The foundation thanked the Embassy of Ukraine in Switzerland and Ambassador Iryna Venediktova for their support.
Geneva and the lake
Isma is based in Paris and reaches Geneva in a little over three hours on the direct TGV Lyria from Gare de Lyon, or in about an hour by plane. Conference hall, hotel ballroom, riverside venue or lakeside lawn: he shapes the performance around the space and the languages in the room.
Congresses and conferences
Congresses at Palexpo, three minutes on foot from the airport railway station, international meetings at the CICG and its 22 conference rooms, or a scientific symposium at Campus Biotech: the show can open the morning, revive the afternoon or close the day.
Galas by the water
Gala dinners in the hotels along the water, such as the Beau-Rivage, the Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues or La Réserve in Bellevue, or in the Bâtiment des Forces Motrices, a former hydroelectric power station in the middle of the Rhône that seats around 500 for dinner.
Estates and science
Receptions at the Domaine du Grand Malagny, an 18th-century estate in Genthod, at the CERN Science Gateway designed by Renzo Piano, which welcomes private events of up to 800 people, or at the Kiosque des Bastions near the Old Town for smaller groups.
Geneva, Carouge, Cologny, Lancy, Vernier, Meyrin, Le Grand-Saconnex, Pregny-Chambésy, Bellevue, Genthod, Plan-les-Ouates, Versoix, Chêne-Bougeries
Nyon, Coppet, Rolle, Morges, Lausanne, Vevey, Montreux
Annemasse, Ferney-Voltaire, Divonne-les-Bains, Saint-Julien-en-Genevois, Évian-les-Bains, Annecy, Chamonix
Good to know: Watches and Wonders takes over Palexpo every April (5 to 11 April in 2027) and books out hotel rooms early. In December, company parties overlap with the Escalade, Geneva’s festival around 12 December, when the youngest and the oldest in the room break a chocolate marmite together. For both periods, reserve the venue and the entertainment at the same time.
What clients say
Corporate event · Mentalism
★★★★★
“A huge thank you to Isma! An incredible performance: our clients absolutely loved it. Professional, astonishing and incredibly friendly. We recommend him wholeheartedly!”
Corporate event · VIP guests
★★★★★
“Isma is fascinating and charismatic: the perfect experience and wow factor for our event with VIP guests. We were all amazed by his talent, and the guests are still talking about it.”
Company plenary · 200 employees
★★★★★
“Everyone loved the entertainment! […] He was very accommodating and tailored his performance to our company’s needs and industry.”
Meet Isma
On stage or up close with your guests, Isma turns surprise into an experience people share.
The art of capturing attention and getting your guests involved.
Trained in machine learning and deep learning.
A master’s degree exploring perception, attention and decision-making.
Easy to organise
One conversation is enough to get started, even if your programme is still taking shape.
Your questions
Yes. Many Geneva rooms mix French speakers with English-speaking delegates and expatriates. Isma performs in English or French and can switch from one group to the next during close-up; for a stage feature, agree the main language with him in advance.
Yes: Nyon, Coppet, Lausanne, Vevey and Montreux on the Swiss shore, and Annemasse, Divonne-les-Bains, Évian-les-Bains or Annecy in France. Mention the town and the venue in your message.
Close-up during the welcome drinks, then a short stage sequence between courses or just before the auction, to bring every table’s attention back at the moment that matters. Timings are agreed with your host and the auctioneer.
Yes. For a congress, a stand evening at Palexpo or a plenary at the CICG, ask the technical team for a wireless microphone and a stage area. Close-up needs nothing at all, so it also works in a foyer or on an exhibition floor.
The quote reflects the format, the duration, the number of guests and the date, plus the train or flight from Paris, shown on its own line. Send your date and venue and you will receive a tailored proposal within 24 hours.
As early as possible: Watches and Wonders week and the December party season are among the busiest periods in Geneva. Last-minute requests are still answered within 24 hours.
Yes: birthdays, anniversaries and weddings, in a villa in Cologny, an estate in Genthod or on a private boat on the lake. For weddings, see the wedding magician page.
Let’s talk about your event
Share your date, venue and programme for a quote, or ask which format would suit your guests.
Reply within 24 hours.
Across Europe and beyond: a selection of our recent dates.
