Music Box Players

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
222699123
IRS 990 coverage
2020–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Swoyersville, PA, USA
Phone
5702399429
Rating
81
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Theater

Reported finances

Revenue
$244,771
Expenses
$267,264
Assets
$501,819
Liabilities
$430,521

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

10 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Amber McKenna (President)

Highest reported compensation

  • Shawn Mullen (Director): $4,000 total reported compensation
  • Amber McKenna (President): $1,780 total reported compensation
  • Eyanna Wawrzynek (Director): $1,050 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Operation of a theater for community and educational purposes.

Operating model

Revenue model
Other-operating. 98% of the money available for current operations came from other operating revenue.
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

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 84
  • Transparency & Controls: 90
  • Accountability: 68
  • Sustainability: 31
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 98.3%; rating input score 98
  • Program expense ratio: 90%; rating input score 90
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Limited
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 2 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 22
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Fail
    • 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: -9.2%; rating input score 20; 20th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.88; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.86; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 1.1%; rating input score 34; 34th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 24% per year; rating input score 100; 86th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 15.2% per year; rating input score 100; 80th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 7.7% per year; rating input score 100; 55th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 98.3% of revenue deployed · 90% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 9 of 9 board members independent · 2 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $241K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $4K · 10 people listed
  • Consistency: 41 of 42 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 3 filed schedules
  • Filing history: 6 filing years from 2020 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • 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 — Accountability: Governance controls: 6 of 8 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 20/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 58/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 5/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 34/100.