Opera Company of Middlebury Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
201993530
IRS 990 coverage
2018–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2019
Location
Middlebury, VT, USA
Phone
8023886300
Rating
86
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Arts, Culture, and Humanities

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$259,191
Expenses
$326,260
Assets
$134,367
Liabilities
$113,664

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

Leadership & pay

12 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • James Malcolm (President)
  • Richard Marshak (Vice President)

Highest reported compensation

  • Robin LaPlante (Managing Director end 4/18): $10,385 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 mission of the Opera Company of Middlebury (OCM) is to bring professional-level, quality live opera productions and experiences to our region. We also maintain a robust educational program for emerging professionals and teen singers while expanding our broader communities' understanding of opera through outreach programs.

What it reported doing in 2024

An important part of OCM's mission is to expose opera to youth. OCM does this by providing training and performance opportunities for high school youth through three programs: a Fall residency in a local high school to teach the youth about opera and to stage performances of Dido and Aeneas; an afterschool opera scenes program; and a summer program for high school and college students with performances in senior living residences. In the Fall of 2024 the Dido and Aeneas program was held at the three high schools in Addison County, VT: Middlebury Union, Mount Abraham Union, and Vergennes Union. This collaboration resulted in a full-scale opera production with over 140 students on stage for each of the two performances. High school students also received valuable training and experience in backstage roles, as stage managers, props personnel, and in lighting and sound roles. The afterschool opera scenes program gives high school youth one-on-one coaching and the opportunity to learn music of a specific language or from a selected composer. These youth gain skills and knowledge and then gain confidence by performing in front of an audience. A unique program is developed each Fall and Spring. In November 2024 the youth presented "Gilbert and Sullivan: the Podcast" featuring six singers. In April 2025 the youth collaborated with members of the Vermont Youth Orchestra to present "Dear Diary" based on the music of Mozart. Eight singers and 16 musicians participated in this program. Due to the shortened fiscal year, the summer program occurred in FY26, not in FY25.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 97% 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: 94
  • Transparency & Controls: 94
  • Accountability: 74
  • Sustainability: 16
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 92.8%; rating input score 93
  • Fundraising efficiency: $35.65 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 70; 70th percentile among comparable filings

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: 100%; rating input score 100; 80th percentile among comparable filings
  • 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: 3 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 38
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • 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: -25.9%; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.41; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.85; rating input score 6; 6th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 3.2%; rating input score 34; 34th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 4.1% per year; rating input score 100; 50th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 9.8% per year; rating input score 100; 71st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 22.5% per year; rating input score 100; 87th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 92.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 11 of 11 board members independent · 3 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $303K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $10K · 12 people listed
  • Consistency: 42 of 42 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 6 filing years from 2018 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • 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 — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 7 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 11/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 21/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 6/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 34/100.