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Mondo.NYC Speaker

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Tamara Keshecki

Tamara Keshecki

Founding Principal, AINOK Consulting, LLC

Tamara Keshecki, MPP, MM is the founding principal of AINOK Consulting, LLC which has secured over $27M for clients since its inception in 2020. An ardent advocate and accomplished professional musician, she is an Adjunct Faculty Member and Research Associate at the University of Massachusetts Amherst’s School of Public Policy and also Director of Grants and Government Relations for the St. George Theatre, a 1,900-seat historic, live performance venue.

As the Vice-President of the New York Independent Venue Association (NYIVA), she was invited to testify at the 2024 NYS Assembly Standing Committee on Tourism, Arts, Parks and Sports Development on Live Entertainment Event Ticketing Practices and Enforcement, and also the New York State Joint Legislative Hearing on the 2022-2023 Executive Budget Proposal on Economic Development.

She is the co-lead of the Association of Performing Arts Professionals (APAP) Development Affinity Group, and a NYC Mayoral Appointee to both the Small Business Advisory Committee (SBAC) and the Nightlife Advisory Board. She has been an invited to present her team’s research at the Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action (ARNOVA 2022, 23, 24), International Society for Third Sector Research 2024 (ISTR, Belgium), and Social Theory, Politics, and the Arts 2024 (STP&A, Spain), and was invited to speak at SXSW 2023 and the Live Music Society (2024). In 2014, she received a New York City Council Citation for her contribution to New York City’s cultural community.

A professional flutist, Ms. Keshecki was the Founding Executive & Artistic Director of nonprofit organization Musical Chairs Chamber Ensemble, Inc. (MCCE) for 15 years. Working with artists, musicians, composers, and teaching artists, Keshecki curated hundreds of community-based art and music events and classes across the New York tri-state area and led the organization to national grant awards from the National Endowment for the Arts and Chamber Music America.

Mondo 2025 Panels

Margins, Markets and the Future of Independent Live

Friday, October 17, 2025 10:00 AM

Independent venues and promoters face the same challenges as small businesses across the country, including rising costs, shifting consumer habits and tightening margins, while also dealing with the unique pressures of live entertainment. This panel will explore the realities of running an independent stage today, from profitability and operational hurdles to ancillary revenues and declining alcohol sales. Drawing on insights from NIVA’s State of Live Economic Research report, panelists will discuss what these forces mean for sustainability, entrepreneurship, and the future of the sector.

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