Located on 1678 N Virginia St, on the University of Reno, Nevada’s campus, a new music venue has taken the stage. The Greenhouse, owned and managed by Ezriel Smalley, is a small DIY-style house, with various opportunities for people to experience art.
“I wanted a space to freely play music and do art,” said Smalley. “I just wanted to create a spot to make new connections and kind of just be friends with the scene.”
The DIY house scene is a non-traditional, inclusive, unique place to host events. These areas feel more passionate than other venues. It helps gain creative freedom, and an opportunity to see new faces in local creative scenes, rather than giving audiences the chance to see the same artists that are popular enough to get scouted by other “more professional” venues.
Reno is booming with creativity. With many places for artistic expression including the Holland Project, Cypress, Midnight Coffee Roasting, it helps gather interest in creating, rather than watching. The Greenhouse is an amazing place to get involved, and make friends to produce art together.
The Greenhouse itself has been talked about as a welcoming and comfortable place to be, whether performing or watching.
“When I got there, everyone was super kind when greeting me,” said Molly Lindeen, an attendee at the Greenhouse’s most recent gig. “Everyone respected the spot and helped clean up and jam afterwards.”
These house venues have begun to leave the music scene in the nation due to economic shifts as well as the amount of energy that these types of venues require. The Greenhouse has reintroduced this idea of divergent venues, and has been prepared, dedicated, and eager to keep the house alive and blossoming with talent.
The Greenhouse’s first show was hosted on December 20, 2025, and organized four bands performing holiday covers. The venue was held inside, centering in the living room. Lit up with Christmas lights and decked out with handmade paper chains, the venue alluded to a cozy, congenial feeling.
All four bands who performed the holiday cover-show fit a different genre of music, helping provide an opportunity to hear a vast amount of different music, all in one performance.
“It was super sick to perform a gig with these varying bands,” said Ruby Makoutz, a member of a band performing. “Usually people put bands that sound similar together, but this was a super fun and new experience.”
The Greenhouse is secluded and well placed in between many restaurants, businesses, and the Mackay Stadium, leaving a ton of parking possibilities, and fewer opportunities for noise complaints, which are general problems house venues face.
The house does not only do music gigs, but is also working on art galleries, giving fine artists opportunities to be involved in the Greenhouse, outside of attending shows.
To find out about future gigs and events at the Greenhouse, look at their Instagram (@greenhouse.reno), and try to make it to keep the Reno DIY music and art scene alive.
