NIVA Announces New Board President, Andre Perry

Andre Perry was elected as the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA)’s Board President during the association’s second annual conference. This year, the conference was held in Washington, D.C.

Previous to his new role, Perry served as Vice President of the NIVA Board in 2021. Perry also serves as the executive director of the Hancher Auditorium and the Office of Performing Arts and Engagement at the University of Iowa.

“Our NIVA family, our members, represent so many threads of the independent performance world, and it is an honor to be named NIVA’s next Board President,” Perry said in a statement. “We are small club owners, we produce festivals, we run performing arts centers, we are promoters, we are comedy people, we are music heads, we are multidisciplinary performing arts workers, we run for-profits — big, medium and small — and we run nonprofits at a range of sizes, we are government affiliated or part of universities and colleges, or we are part of nothing — committed, brilliant loners who just do what we do for the good of the cause.”

Shahida Mausi (President and CEO of The Right Productions, Live President and Chief Strategic Officer of the Black Promoters Collective and operator of The Aretha Franklin Amphitheatre in Detroit), and Jamie Loeb (Senior Vice President of Marketing at Nederlander Concerts) are both newly-elected members to NIVA’s board

Dayna Frank (co-founder of NIVA, founding President of the NIVA Board and CEO of First Avenue & 7th St Entry), Grace Blake (Programming Director at City Winery NYC), Kira Karbocus (President and COO of Newport Festivals Foundation) and Hal Real (Founder and CEO at World Cafe Live) are all continuing their service on NIVA’s board. Audrey Fix Schaefer (Head of Communications, I.M.P.), Jim Brunberg (Founder, Revolution Hall, Mississippi Studios and a composer/performer), Brad Grossman (COO, Helium Comedy) and Jesica Gerbautz (CEO, Pnk Moon Productions) are all continuing as NIVA Board Officers.

“As NIVA embarks on this new chapter, the Association remains resolute in its mission to support, promote, and advocate for independent venues across the country,” Stephen Parker, Executive Director of NIVA, said in a statement. “The appointment of Andre Perry as Board President, Dayna Frank’s continued leadership on federal advocacy, NIVA’s new slate of Board officers, and the addition of Shahida Mausi and Jamie Loeb to the Board, signals a renewed commitment to advancing the interests of independent venues and festivals and ensuring their continued viability in an ever-evolving live entertainment ecosystem.”