Town Hall Theatre Company Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
946124107
IRS 990 coverage
2019–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Lafayette, CA, USA
Phone
9252836673
Rating
73
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Theater

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$790,596
Expenses
$835,866
Assets
$2,552,726
Liabilities
$162,880

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

Leadership & pay

12 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Rob Seitelman (President)
  • Kathleen McGhee Olson (Vice President)

Highest reported compensation

  • Dennis Markam (Managing Director (End 4/16/2025)): $108,484 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

As proud stewards of Contra Costa County's oldest theatre company and a beloved Lafayette landmark, Town Hall Theatre is a vibrant home for the performing arts. We are dedicated to radical hospitality and building space for artists, audiences, and students to create lasting impact on our community through empathy and connection.

What it reported doing in 2024

At Town Hall Theatre, our artistic programming is driven by a deep belief in the power of storytelling to bring people together. We champion work that reflects our diverse community, sparks meaningful conversation, and invites audiences of all ages to feel seen and inspired. Each season is crafted with care, blending beloved classics with bold new voices to create accessible, vibrant theatre that belongs to everyone.

Operating model

Revenue model
Other-operating. 72% 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.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - 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 fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 81
  • Transparency & Controls: 66
  • Accountability: 68
  • Sustainability: 42
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 86.7%; rating input score 87
  • Program expense ratio: 82%; rating input score 82
  • Fundraising efficiency: $13.7 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 48; 48th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.3%; rating input score 93; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 88.9%; rating input score 89; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 3 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 38
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • 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: -5.7%; rating input score 23; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.05; rating input score 76; 76th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.06; rating input score 49; 49th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 13%; rating input score 28; 28th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 22.6% per year; rating input score 100; 85th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 1% per year; rating input score 100; 19th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 28.7% per year; rating input score 100; 90th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 86.7% of revenue deployed · 82% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 8 of 9 board members independent · 3 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $686K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $108K · 12 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 32 of 33 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 6 filing years from 2019 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.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 48/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 23/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 28/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 49/100.