Features
Dayna Frank, CEO, First Avenue and Board President, NIVA
–
–
‘The NIVA Superheroes’
Dayna Frank
CEO, First Avenue and Board President, NIVA
Dayna Frank had an unbelievable year, going from running one of the most iconic venues in the country in Minneapolis’ First Avenue to landing in the national spotlight in her role as board president of the newly formed and essential National Independent Venue Association. Consisting of some 3,000 venues, promoters and festivals in every state in the union, NIVA was wildly successful in galvanizing support for independent venues to the tune of $16.125 billion in federal funding – the largest arts grant ever by the U.S. government.
In truth, Frank, last year’s Pollstar Impact 50 cover subject, is tired of getting disproportionate credit for NIVA’s accomplishments, which are strategized and executed by a veritable army of brilliant members. “I just feel like I am getting a lot of undeserved and undue personal attention,” she says. “It is a team effort. And there are so many people that all contributed equally to the effort.”
Consequently, for this year’s Impact 50, Frank insisted on giving shine to the band of “superheroes” who have enabled NIVA’s success. Here, then, are some of NIVA’s superheroes
and their vital superhero stats:
–
Superhero Name: The Queen
Superpower: Credibility
NIVA Gig: Director of Communications
In Brief: “It’s the way she’s able to tell our story and communicate the dire situation and the circumstances that’s unparalleled.”
Birth Name: Audrey Fix Schaefer
Day Gig: Director of Communications, I.M.P., Washington, D.C.
–
Superhero Name: The Prime Mover
Superpower: Uniting people
NIVA Gig: Executive Director
In Brief: “He’s incredible at bringing people together, having them collaborate and effectively work together.”
Birth Name: Rev. Moose
Day Gig: Managing Partner, Co-founder, Marauder, New York City
–
Superhero Name: Captains’ Captain
Superpower: Doing everything better than others
NIVA Gig: Advocacy Chair
In Brief: “He got all the Kansas representatives to care about live music. When we saw that, it blew our minds. Kansas Senator Moran called the Congressional hearing.”
Birth Name: Adam Hartke
Day Gig: Operating Partner, The Wave; co-owner, TheCotillion Ballroom, Wichita, Kan.
– Lennora Jules
Superhero Name: The Marketing Maven
Superpower: Persuasion, herding Type A cats
NIVA Gig: Director of Marketing
In Brief: “She was incredibly effective on the Save Our Stages campaign.”
Birth Name: Lennora Jules
Day Gig: CMO, Pabst Theatre Group, Milwaukee
– Katie Tuten
Superhero Name: The Godmother
Superpower: Building rock-solid foundations
NIVA Gig: Illinois Precinct Captain
In Brief: “She helped us get the lobbyists early-on and created the foundational and formation support we so needed.”
Birth Name: Katie Tuten
Day Gig: Owner, The Hideout; Founder, CIVL Chicago
–
Superhero Name: The Heart
Superpower: Killing with kindness
NIVA Gig: Los Angeles Precinct Captain
In Brief: “The L.A. Times Troubadour article blew everything wide open for us, because that’s what made the music industry care.”
Birth Name: Amy Madrigali
Day Gig: Head of Booking, The Troubadour, Los Angeles
–
Superhero Name: The Charmer
Superpower: Casts hypnotic spells, poet
NIVA Gig: Precinct Captain
In Brief: “Oh he’s a charmer with that Southern drawl. He got Senator John Cornyn on board and he lives in San Antonio.”
Birth Name: Blayne Tucker
Day Gig: Lawyer; Owner of The Mix, Limelight, Floore’s Country Store and 502 Bar, San Antonio
Day Gig: Lawyer; Owner of The Mix, Limelight, Floore’s Country Store and 502 Bar, San Antonio
–
Superhero Names: The NYC Wonder Triplets
Superpower: Relentless battlers
NIVA Gigs: Board Member, Vice President, Precinct Captain
In Brief: “‘Relentless’ is the word I always used. It was like, ‘How did you guys do this?’ They never stopped.”
Birth Names: Grace Blake, Justin Kantor, Jen Lyon
Day Gigs: Artist Relations & Promotions, The Iridium; Co-founder, Director of Operations, (Le) Poisson Rouge; Owner, Artistic Director, MeanRed Productions
–
Superhero Name: Keeping It Real
Superpower: Authenticity
NIVA Gig: Precinct Captain
In Brief: “Amazing what he was able to do for us while he was fighting developers for his own place.”
Birth Name: Chris Cobb
Day Gig: Owner, The Exit/Inn, Nashville
–
Superhero Name The Wonder
Superpower: Unruffled leadership
NIVA Gig: Co-Head of NIVA’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusivity Task Force
In Brief: “Tobi breaks barriers, defies odds and shows us the way.”
Birth Name: Tobi Parks
Day Gig: Owner, xBk Live, Des Moines, Iowa
Other Notable NIVA SUPERHEROES
Lindsay “Fortitude Fosterer” Brandt
Mary “Marketing Guardian” Wilson
Jason “Voice of Calm” Anderson
Sean “Checklist Charlie” Watterson
Liz “Pinnacle of Patience” Tallent
Jim “Soul Soother” Brunberg
Adam “The Kid” Valen
Tom “Force For Change” DeGeorge
Hal “The Head & The Heart” Real
Patrick “Artist Whisperer” Wilson
Jamie “Video Genie” Loeb
Jason “Creative Force” Griel
Stephen “Rainmaker” Sternschein
Stephen “Savior of Stages” Chilton