Lisa‑Marie Stienessen is introducing Mah Jongg to new generations through her business, Let’s Learn Mahjong! Photos: Kian Olesen
Mah Jongg is taking our community by storm.
Lisa‑Marie Stienessen describes the pre-Mah Jongg atmosphere as nervous anticipation. As her students take their seats around the table, there’s light chatter and friendly introductions. “People are excited to try it, but they have heard it can be complicated, and it can be,” the Maple Grove Mah Jongg instructor says.
The rules have a reputation for being overwhelming at first, but that’s what Stienessen and her business, Let’s Learn Mahjong!, are there to help with. Those who doubt themselves the most often end up being the most skilled at the game, she says. “This definitely isn’t Uno or Chutes and Ladders, but it’s doable and fun,” she says. “It really stretches your brain and creates a community around you.”
Mah Jongg’s recent rise in popularity can be traced back to celebrity endorsements, the 2020s renewed interest in analog hobbies and the current boom in aesthetic tile sets and accessories. But it’s important to note that the game has been around for over a century. Stienessen says that while Mah Jongg has more than 20 global variations (and a variety of spellings), what would become the American version was brought to the United States in the 1920s. Its popularity ebbed and flowed until Jewish women on the East Coast revitalized it in 1937, formalizing the rules and creating the National Mah Jongg League. “I always teach a little history of the game,” Stienessen says. “People like to know why the game is the way it is.”
Mah Jongg can be notoriously tricky, which is why it helps to learn alongside others.
The historical context and the challenge of the game are what initially attracted Stienessen to Mah Jongg when neighbors got together to play. As she honed her own skills, Stienessen started contemplating how to turn teaching Mah Jongg into a business. With more than 25 years of experience leading hobby-based classes, including cake decorating and quilting, Stienessen says designing a Mah Jongg class was a natural fit.
And so far, the community response has been enthusiastic. “Even over the last year, [Mah Jongg’s popularity] has grown exponentially,” Stienessen says. In fact, in the first six months of the business, she has had more than 500 students. In addition to classes, Stienessen also hosts private parties for couples, friend groups and fundraisers, and teaches at venues around the Twin Cities, including Maple Grove’s Community Center, Pints & Paddle and Rush Creek Golf Club.
For those feeling doubtful about getting started, Stienessen points out that the people who are most reluctant to learn frequently end up having the most fun. “Men tend to be especially notorious for this,” she says. “They are often dragged to a couple’s night but end up getting into the mechanics of the game and are surprised at how much strategy is involved. It’s just fun to see people enjoying themselves … Everything is hard until it isn’t. That can be Mah Jongg.”
Let’s Learn Mahjong!
Instagram: @letslearnmahjong
