Entertainment consulting company Venue Coalition has hired veteran entertainment executive Steve Kirsner as vp of booking. In his new role, Kirsner will focus on servicing the company’s 150+ member venues across North America, assisting them with national and regional booking as well as doing advocacy work for the national touring industry.
The addition of Kirsner comes on the heels of several new arenas joining Venue Coalition as members over the past few months. They include Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., and its sister venue EagleBank Arena in Fairfax, Va.; Agganis Arena in Boston; Great Southern Bank Arena in Springfield, Mo.; John F. Savage Arena in Toledo, Ohio; Ocean Center in Daytona Beach, Fla.; and Mexico City’s Pepsi Center WTC.
“I’m excited to join the team at Venue Coalition,” said Kirsner, who most recently served as vp of booking & events at SAP Center at San Jose, Calif. “As a former venue client and member of Venue Coalition, I have intimate knowledge of how valuable their services are to independent venues. I’m eager to get started and represent so many members, many of whom I call friends, and to assist as we drive more first-class content into their buildings and help them navigate the touring landscape.”
Kirsner’s 47-year career runs deep in the live entertainment industry. He spent a decade as an integral part of magician Doug Henning’s team, working his way up to vp/GM of Henning’s company where he was responsible for all aspects of the magician’s business. In the early ’90s, Kirsner left Los Angeles to begin producing tours, music videos and special events for Mannheim Steamroller in Omaha, Nebr., where the group was based. Looking to return to California, in 1996 Steve took on the role of director, and then vp of booking & events, at SAP Center at San Jose (formerly San Jose Arena, Compaq Center and HP Pavilion), where he would remain for over two and a half decades. Booking the arena under the mentorship and leadership of Frank Jirik and Jim Goddard, it eventually became one of the top twenty venues in the United States for ticket sales.
“We are so excited to bring Steve onboard,” said Venue Coalition president Andrew Prince. “He has decades of extensive operational and programming experience running one of the most successful venues in the country. We welcome his expertise and passion for this industry and know his strong relationships and stellar reputation will be a great benefit to our organization.”
