Quintessence Theatre Group Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 270469276
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2011–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2010
- Location
- Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Phone
- 2159874450
- Rating
- 78
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Performing Arts Organizations
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $3,241,199
- Expenses
- $2,480,525
- Assets
- $5,729,221
- Liabilities
- $2,225,194
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
16 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- ERICA EZOLD (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
Highest reported compensation
- ALEXANDER BURNS (PRODUCING ARTISTIC DIRECTOR): $73,907 total reported compensation
- ERICA EZOLD (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $64,038 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Quintessence theatre group is dedicated to the performance and adaptation of epic works of classic literature and drama for the contemporary stage, which ignites the mind through the power of the actor, design and spoken word. The organization exists to develop and produce theatre which is immediate and necessary, and that strives to attract new audiences to the art form by challenging its artists and audiences alike to consider what is essential in theatre and in human nature.
What it reported doing in 2024
Quintessence's xv anniversary season opened with the philadelphia premiere of an internationally celebrated new version of cyrano de bergerac, directed by alex burns. The production attracted 2,300 theatregoers and rave reviews, leading to an extension from 24 to 30 performances. For the winter family-friendly holiday musical, we presented cole porter's kiss me, kate. This production drew 3,544 attendees. Returning to our roots as philadelphia's only theatre company producing william shakespeare's works in repertory, the march-april 2025 reckless romance repertory featured a midsummer night's dream and antony & cleopatra. Notably, 12% of the audience at antony & cleopatra and 16% at midsummer were new to quintessence, totaling 28% new audiences for shakespeare. In may 2025, quintessence presented naomi wallace and marcus rediker's the return of benjamin lay, marking quintessence's first successful co-production with a theatre from nyc. In may-june 2025, quintessence theatre capped its xv anniversary season with the world premiere estate sanctioned theatrical adaptation of james baldwin's giovanni's room as part of its programming plans to produce classic stories from diverse early american communities. The adaptation garnered significant national attention, and attracted impressive box office numbers, with 4,360 attendees (93% capacity). Other notable achievements included community centered events such as the attendance of egyptologists/curators/penn museum professors josef wagner and jen wagner at a post-show conversation of antony & cleopatra, as well as great conversations around the return of benjamin lay including with playwright and historian marcus rediker and mark povinelli, who portrayed benjamin lay in the production. In fy25, quintessence booked service for 1,977 k-12 students, including 728 from nearby title 1 public schools. Our programs included: 25 student matinees and post-show discussions for 1,468 students, 4 in-school workshops for 175 students, 2 long-term, after-school residencies for 150 students, 6 touring performances of the owl and the pussycat with post-show writing workshops for 135 students. 3 weeks of summer camp at the sedgwick for 36 campers (july 2024), and 3 semesters of our saturday phoenix & turtle club (fall, winter, spring) for 13 young actors.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 64% 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 total spending goes to programs. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 62
- Transparency & Controls: 92
- Accountability: 87
- Sustainability: 66
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 59.5%; rating input score 59
- Program expense ratio: 77.6%; rating input score 78
- Fundraising efficiency: $6.7 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 25; 25th 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: 93.3%; rating input score 93; 24th percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 7 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 78
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Pass
- 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: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 23.5%; rating input score 80; 80th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.31; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.39; rating input score 27; 27th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 5.6%; rating input score 50; 50th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 13.2% per year; rating input score 100; 73rd percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 15.5% per year; rating input score 100; 82nd percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 19.8% per year; rating input score 100; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 59.5% of revenue deployed · 77.6% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 14 of 15 board members independent · 7 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $1.9M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $74K · 16 people listed
- Consistency: 30 of 30 current checks pass
- Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 9 filing years from 2011 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.
- Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 59/100.
- High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 25/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 9 not reported.
- High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 27/100.
- Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 50/100.