Because of restrictions related to the Coronavirus (COVID-19), Denver Arts and Venues will be laying off or furloughing 70 of its employees this month.

Denver Arts and Venues is an agency that operates several Colorado music venues, including Red Rocks Amphitheater and the Denver Performing Arts Complex. The layoffs will go into effect Sunday, September 27th, and will continue until at least January 2nd, 2021.

COVID-19 has forced venues across the United States to close their doors, and halt live music events. In fact, some venues across the state felt the results so heavily that they were forced to close their doors for good. These include Hodi's Half Note in Fort Collins and 3 King's Tavern on Colfax Avenue in Denver.

The announcement was made the day after venues across the state lit up in red in an attempt to raise awareness of the effect that COVID-19 has had on employees of the venues and the live music industry as a whole.

Red Rocks Amphitheater has been closed for much of the summer because of the pandemic, although some small shows have taken place there with live streams that allowed fans to view the performances from their mobile devices.

Recently, I've spoken to friends about how even though it's almost fall, it doesn't really feel like we had a summer because of the lack of concerts. Sure, it was hot, but not being able to go to places like Red Rocks or other outdoor venues really made it feel like we missed out on my favorite season altogether.

Hopefully, the music venues that have survived the pandemic so far will be able to make a full recovery, but as far as live music goes, 2020 has been nothing short of a bust.

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