Formed at the onset of the COVID-19 shutdown, the National Independent Venue Association now has nearly 2,000 members in all 50 states and Washington, D.C., including venues like Stage West in Scranton and State College, the F.M. Kirby Center in Wilkes-Barre, the Sherman Theater in Stroudsburg, and ArtsQuest’s Musikfest Cafe and Levitt Pavilion at the SteelStacks in Bethlehem as well as festivals like the recently canceled Briggs Farm Blues Festival and Musikfest that will only be held online this year.
These independent venues and promoters were the first to close during the coronavirus pandemic and will be the last to fully reopen. They are at risk for survival if Congress does not take quick and specific action to address the unique circumstances of this still-shuttered component of the small business sector, which normally fuels economic growth for the communities they serve.
On June 9, NIVA released an updated
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