Catastrophic Theatre Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 753244892
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2012–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Houston, TX, USA
- Phone
- 7135222723
- Rating
- 77
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Theater
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $818,000
- Expenses
- $715,593
- Assets
- $543,822
- Liabilities
- $0
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
11 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- Ann Christensen (President)
- Chara Gafford (Vice President)
Highest reported compensation
- Jason Nodler (Co-Artistic Director): $93,836 total reported compensation
- Tamarie Cooper (Co-Artistic Director): $88,640 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
The Catastrophic Theatre is an ensemble-based theatre company dedicated to creating a meaningful exchange between artists and audiences through the creation and performance of new works of all sorts.
What it reported doing in 2024
See Schedule O The Catastrophic Theatre produced five plays during our 32nd season in 2024/2025, including 4 new works from such eclectic creators as emerging playwright Candice D'Meza (Miss LaRaj's House of Dystopian Futures) to a finalist for The Pulitzer Prize in Drama, Lisa D'Amour (Frozen Section). From experimental dance-theatre artist Brian Jucha (Love Bomb) to Houston's all-original musical-making machine, Catastrophic Theatre's very own Tamarie Cooper (Another Ding Dang Tamarie Show). We also we revisited our rich repertory with a return to Catastrophic's favorite and most produced playwright, Mickle Maher's Spirits to Enforce. Catastrophic reached over 5,300 people and employed more than 150 artists. We also worked with local high schools, community colleges, and university undergraduate and graduate programs to provide master classes and on-site lectures, personal and professional mentorships, and targeted post show question and answer sessions with student groups.Catastrophic Theatre also celebrated 15 years of our Pay-What-You-Can ticketing model, which removes financial barriers allowing more people to attend theatrical productions. The Catastrophic Theatre is Houston's first and only avant-garde theatre with a 30-year record of successful risk-taking. The Houston Chronicle recently identified us to be "Houston's Boldest Theatre".
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 81% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- Distribution model
- Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.
- Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.
The verdict
SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 63
- Transparency & Controls: 92
- Accountability: 84
- Sustainability: 53
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 63.6%; rating input score 64
- Program expense ratio: 72.3%; rating input score 72
- Fundraising efficiency: $8.01 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: Limited
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: Limited
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 5 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 62
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Pass
- CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
- Other executive compensation review process: Fail
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Missing
- Independent financial-statement audit: Fail
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 12.5%; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.76; rating input score 34; 34th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 25.5%; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 4% per year; rating input score 100; 37th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 4.1% per year; rating input score 100; 38th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 4% per year; rating input score 100; 34th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 63.6% of revenue deployed · 72.3% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 9 of 9 board members independent · 5 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $517K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $94K · 11 people listed
- Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
- Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 13 filing years from 2012 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
- Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
- People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 31/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 7 not reported.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 34/100.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 9/100.