Starring Buffalo Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 831089172
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2024–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2023, Form 990-N 2018
- Location
- Amherst, NY, USA
- Phone
- 7164640073
- Rating
- 82
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Performing Arts Organizations
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $206,183
- Expenses
- $182,143
- Assets
- $39,834
- Liabilities
- $313
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
13 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- DINA SLAWSON (PRESIDENT)
- MICHAEL RUSSO (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
Highest reported compensation
- ANDREW FORNAROLA (ARTISTIC DIRECTOR/TREASURER): $15,000 total reported compensation
- MICHAEL RUSSO (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $15,000 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
To connect, entertain, teach, thrill, and provide top-quality musical theater. Starring buffalo shows offer buffalo audiences unrivaled access to broadway's greatest theater artists, and provides western New York students and community members the chance to learn from, work alongside, and be inspired by the stars in both master classes and performances.
What it reported doing in 2024
To build an artistic bridge between buffalo and broadway.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Earned-program. 81% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program 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 total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 83
- Transparency & Controls: 92
- Accountability: 82
- Sustainability: 41
- Growth: 60
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 77.3%; rating input score 77
- Program expense ratio: 87.5%; rating input score 87
- Fundraising efficiency: $1,645 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 99; 99th 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: 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 9 controls in place; rating input score 56
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- 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: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Fail
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 11.7%; rating input score 63; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.22; rating input score 12; 12th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 47; 47th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 16.5%; rating input score 23; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: Limited
- Revenue growth: 26.7% per year; rating input score 100; 92nd percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 4.5% per year; rating input score 100; 45th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 77.3% of revenue deployed · 87.5% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 12 of 12 board members independent · 5 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $159K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $15K · 13 people listed
- Consistency: 17 of 17 current checks pass
- Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
- 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 — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 9 not reported.
- High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 12/100.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 23/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 47/100.