New Port Richey’s New Music Venue — The Verona
The northern Pinellas area has seen music venues come and go over the years, and lately it seems to be more of the latter. Evan Ursitti is trying to change that. Located at 4319 US Highway 19 N in New Port Richey, in the spot where the old coffee house Insomniacs used to be and next to the now departed Bourbon Street bar and music venue, The Verona is attempting to fill the gap left in the New Port Richey rock scene. At first glance it seems sparse. The venue has stripped down the old interior to make space for more patrons and present a large sound stage capable of showcasing the area’s talent. It opened June 29th of this year.
I had the opportunity to meet with Ursitti and talk about his vision for The Verona. He has been based out of the New Port Richey area for the past twenty to twenty-five years while working across the country in bands and sound production. Needless to say, he knows both sides of the fence when it comes to putting on shows. Currently he is the guitarist, programmer, and producer of the metal band Burning Fair Verona, and he also owns and operates Here Kitty Kitty Studios in Port Richey. The Verona music venue will be run in conjunction with his music studio, so local musicians will be able to benefit from the vast knowledge that Ursitti has attained in the industry to further promote the local music scene.
Speaking with Ursitti about The Verona’s place in the community, he described how he saw that a lot of venues in the area suffered from bad sound. Many of them were bars with stages that weren’t built with live music in mind. Consequently, up-and-coming bands would end up playing in settings that suffered from bad sound quality. The Verona, in contrast, is going to be a venue by musicians for musicians. As he says himself, he wanted a place for musicians who “wanted to get up and get start kicking some ass.”
As Ursitti went on to explain, New Port Richey has always had a large community of musicians. Bands would often form and disband, and five days later a new arrangement would arise. Yet the community was lacking a place for them to showcase their music with that in mind. In other words, “New Port Richey was calling for something of quality.” With this in mind, Ursitti started a GoFundMe and received $8,500 in donations to get his project started. Previously the capacity of the location was around 99 people, whereas now, in its new stripped-down capacity and with an elegant bar tucked away to the side leaving ample room for the stage and standing area, The Verona can hold around 150 people.
There are no bones about it. The Verona is set up for serious noise. Other than a TouchTones jukebox recessed into a far wall and the ten or so stools around the bar, this place is built for music. The ability, resources, and passion of Ursitti are reflected in all his projects and combine to create a triumvirate for promoting local music. Fortunately for northern Pinellas, Ursitti has kept his talents in this oft-separated region of the county compared to the more saturated areas like St. Petersburg and offers a springboard and guiding hand to aspiring musicians.
Currently they host live music every Friday and Saturday night, with an open mic each Thursday.
THE VERONA
HERE KITTY KITTY STUDIOS
BURNING FAIR VERONA
