Lucas Theatre for the Arts Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
581775851
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Savannah, GA, USA
Phone
9122343200
Rating
72
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Performing Arts Centers

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$517,653
Expenses
$1,541,063
Assets
$8,562,038
Liabilities
$7,087,222

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

6 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • PAULA WALLACE (PRESIDENT)
  • Christina Routhier (Executive Director)

Highest reported compensation

  • PAULA WALLACE (PRESIDENT): $5,736,005 total reported compensation
  • JEFFREY WALLER (TREASURER): $1,042,079 total reported compensation
  • DARRELL NAYLOR JOHNSON (DIRECTOR): $250,610 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 lucas theatre provides the community with a wide range of cultural and artistic performances, including theatrical productions, film screenings, and music concerts, throughout the year. The lucas theatre is a 1,200-seat, state-of-the-art, historic theater that provides a professionally run venue space for community organizations and events, including savannah philharmonic, savannah music festival, savannah ballet theatre, and local schools. In addition to a state-of-the-art sound and technology systems, the lucas theatre features its original, fully restored 1925 wurlitzer pipe organ.

What it reported doing in 2024

The lucas theatre served over 84,594 patrons in 2024-25 with a wide range of cultural and artistic performances over 183 days of use. The lucas theatre hosts theatrical productions, film screenings, and music concerts during the year and provides a state-of-the-art, professionally run venue space for community organizations and events, including savannah philharmonic, savannah music festival, savannah ballet theatre, and local schools.

Operating model

Revenue model
Affiliate-supported. 68% of the money available for current operations came from contributions from related organizations.
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.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence and a relatively small share of voting board members are independent.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 87
  • Transparency & Controls: 69
  • Accountability: 63
  • Sustainability: 31
  • Growth: 40

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 94%; rating input score 94
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 44.4%; rating input score 44; 11th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -197.7%; rating input score 0; 0th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 5.56; rating input score 86; 86th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.83; rating input score 8; 8th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 9.2%; rating input score 40; 40th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 1% per year; rating input score 100; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -5.3% per year; rating input score 0; 5th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -0.8% per year; rating input score 0; 15th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 94% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 4 of 9 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $1.4M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $5.7M · 6 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 4 contractors listed · $3.4M reported
  • Consistency: 25 of 25 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: Resolved incoming and outgoing counterparties from filed money flows.
  • Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
  • 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.

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 44/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 8/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 40/100.