Acts of Violet(79)

CAMERON FRANK: Did Violet tell you why she decided on these major last-minute changes?

RUDY SERRANO: When I asked her, she said she wasn’t confident enough to do the bigger illusions, especially the ones with volunteers, without something getting fucked up. She refused to take a risk like that again and face more accusations of caring more about her career than about people. She was so adamant, she said if I tried to change her mind, she’d fire me on the spot and cancel the tour altogether.

I thought maybe Joyce could reason with her, but she said Violet made the same threats to her.

So we cut the bigger illusions, repurposed the set pieces as best we could, focused on interesting ways we could use light and sound, and … it’s a testament to Violet’s charisma that she pulled it off. The first couple of weeks were rough, but she kept getting new ideas on how to create this special experience for her fans. It obviously worked out because we spent a good four and a half years touring.

CAMERON FRANK: What was that like? What was she like during those years?

RUDY SERRANO: After getting a taste of her high-strung diva side, I braced myself when we got on the road. And I did see that side of her again, but not as often as I expected. I was actually really surprised by how … nice she was.

CAMERON FRANK: That’s probably the first time I’ve ever heard someone refer to Violet Volk as nice.

RUDY SERRANO: And she’d probably hate me for saying it. I don’t mean nice in a bland way. It caught me off guard how caring she was.

The woman was like a rock star at that point. She could demand anything she wanted and have it handed to her on a platter. A state-of-the-art tour bus with a custom-made isolation tank? Done. Fresh local produce and a vegan chef preparing all meals? Done. Every step was taken to make sure Violet was comfortable on the road.

But she made sure it went both ways and prioritized the well-being of her entire crew, all fourteen of us. Sometimes she could be annoying about it—not all of us enjoyed the meditation and smoothies she foisted on us daily—but she took care of us as much as we took care of her. She made sure we were eating right, getting enough sleep. Scheduled more days off than any other tours I’ve done. Depending on the place and season, she’d take us on bike rides or hikes. If we were having a tough week, she’d try to do something to raise our spirits, like hire a masseuse or throw us a pool party. Sometimes it would be something offbeat, like laser tag or country line dancing. Most of the crew was busy setting up the show during the day and breaking it down at night after she performed, so they didn’t see much of Violet. But she still tried to spend one-on-one time with each of us, inviting us to watch movies or play video games on her tour bus.

CAMERON FRANK: Violet played video games?

RUDY SERRANO: Oh yeah. She especially loved the survivor horror ones like Silent Hill and Resident Evil. Her favorite was GTA, though. I wasn’t allowed to schedule any shows for the forty-eight-hour period following a new Grand Theft Auto release and made sure she was not disturbed for that duration.

CAMERON FRANK: I wouldn’t have expected Violet to be so carefree at this point.

RUDY SERRANO: She wasn’t. I think she was very lonely and stayed on the road so long because it kept her distracted. That’s why she had me schedule so many private after-hours shows for her, too. If she could be up late enough performing, she could sleep through the day and not have as much time to kill before she had to go back onstage.

She was happier when Mayuree joined the tour—those two were on-again/off-again for years—but she didn’t come around often and sooner or later they’d start fighting, and Mayuree would leave. That’s when Violet would be at her lowest. Nothing we could do would help except waiting for her to come out of it. We all knew she was estranged from her family, so we never mentioned them. But we felt bad that she didn’t really have anyone, so we made sure she could rely on us. The crew was very protective of her.

CAMERON FRANK: It sounds like you formed your own makeshift family.

RUDY SERRANO: That’s what happens on the road.

I’m not saying Violet and I became besties—we didn’t—and I never grew to care for her act—the only thing I hate more than magic is the world of self-help. But I cared for Violet.

I can’t imagine where she might be now. I like to think she’s playing GTA somewhere, sipping on a smoothie, not giving a shit about what the rest of us are saying about her.




July 22, 2003

Dear Violet,

I didn’t expect you to come through the way you did, but you saved me making all of Mom’s funeral arrangements. Thank you for that. I knew she didn’t have long, but even when you see it coming, you never know how it’ll hit you, and it hit me like a freight train. I can barely even remember the week you were here, just how comforting it was to have you around. It felt like having the sister/best friend I always wished for.

You came through yet again when you offered to take care of Quinn while I got my shit together and spent some quiet time with Gabriel. It was hard to see you two leave, but she was elated to go to Cali with you.

I never imagined things could improve this much between us after … well, after everything. But with Mom gone, all that seemed inconsequential.

And then I saw you on LateFridayLive. And then I saw my daughter on LateFridayLive. I racked my brain for when you asked my permission to use Quinn in a magic trick or bring her on national TV with you or put her fucking life at risk to clean up your public image. Let’s see, that would be never and never and never. Instead, you found a way of manipulating my husband into giving permission. Sounds about right.