From Skateboards to Stages: Jeff Revilla’s Journey to Building a Live Podcast Theater
I recently had the opportunity to join Side Hustle to Small Business hosted by Sanjay Parekh, and it gave me a chance to reflect on a journey that started with skateboards and led to a live podcast theater in Tarentum, Pennsylvania.
The First Dream: A Skate Shop and a Lesson in Timing
In 8th grade, I wrote a paper about owning a skate shop with a skate park. In the early 2000s, I made it real. I opened a mail-order skateboard company and shipped boards around the world. I built message boards. I hosted videos of local skaters. I loved the idea that a small shop in Natrona could connect with Italy, Canada, and California.
Then 2008 happened.
Six months before the financial crisis fully hit, I expanded into manufacturing. Sales dropped 30 percent month after month. On April 17th, I locked the doors for the last time.
It wiped me out financially. But it sharpened me as an entrepreneur. I learned about risk. About timing. About runway. About knowing your numbers.
Those lessons never left.
Discovering Live Streaming and Interactive Media
Years later, I found podcasting. Then I found live streaming. On a platform called Blab, I launched a live trivia show that connected people around the world in real time. That show became Stuff I Never Knew.
No prizes. Just bragging rights.
Today, the show airs on local television in Western Pennsylvania. The partnership helps fund my theater experiment and reduces the financial risk. That was intentional. I did not want to gamble everything again.
Why I Opened Poduty Live
In June 2024, I opened Poduty Live LLC.
It’s about 2,000 square feet. A small stage. Roughly 40 to 60 seats. Professional audio. Multiple cameras. Livestream capability.
But here’s the bigger idea:
Most podcasters record in basements or home offices. On the other end of the spectrum, the top one percent are filling arenas.
There’s nothing in between.
I built Poduty Live for that middle. The podcaster who can draw 20, 40, maybe 100 people locally. With the right setup, those 40 seats are not a limitation. They are the foundation.
I call it the Infinite Seat Theater.
You can have 40 people in the room and thousands watching online. The physical stage becomes a portal to the world.
What I Got Wrong (And What I’m Adjusting)
One of my biggest miscalculations?
All my connections were virtual. I knew hundreds of podcasters around the world. I knew almost no one locally.
So I had to start educating my own backyard. Open houses. Tours. Free walkthroughs. Showing people what’s possible.
Another adjustment: I originally put everything behind a ticket paywall. That limited exposure. Now I’m shifting toward more public livestreams so people can see the capabilities of the stage before they ever buy a ticket.
Entrepreneurship is constant recalibration.
The Emotional Reality of Building Something New
Within a single hour, I can go from:
“I am a genius. This is working.”
to
“What in the world am I doing?”
That’s normal.
There are moments when the tech works perfectly and it feels magical. Then there are days when you are chasing a humming sound in a speaker for two hours only to find a loose cable in the subwoofer.
You have to love the process.
Advice for Anyone Starting a Side Hustle
If I could boil it down:
- Build a real business plan.
- Know your numbers.
- Create a runway.
- Reduce your risk before you leap.
When I opened Poduty Live, I already had equipment. I had revenue from television. I kept overhead low. I gave myself two years to evaluate the experiment.
I’m 48. I told myself I would give this until I’m 50.
Not reckless. Calculated.
Why I Believe in Live Podcasting
Podcasting is powerful because it’s intimate. It’s you and a voice in your ear.
A live podcast, when done right, recreates that intimacy in a room. Darkened space. Focused lighting. No distractions. Just the host and the audience.
Then you add livestreaming.
Then replay content.
Then clips.
Then community.
That’s where I see independent media going.
Not just downloads.
Experiences.
