The Wilbury Theatre Group

What The Wilbury Theatre Group does

The Wilbury Theatre Group is a not-for-profit professional theatre company founded in 2010 by Josh Short in Providence, Rhode Island. The company produces a Main Series of contemporary plays, world premieres, and reimagined classics, hosts the annual Providence Fringe Festival (founded 2014, now in its 13th year), and runs Studio W, described as the only New Work Development program of its kind in Rhode Island. The company operates from inside the WaterFire Arts Center at 475 Valley Street, Providence, under a collective bargaining agreement with Actors' Equity Association, and won the 2018 National Theatre Company Award from the American Theatre Wing.

Revenue is generated through five streams: ticket sales (standard $38 with pay-what-you-can tiers from $10 to $55 under the Access for All program), annual season memberships, tax-deductible donations from individual donors, grants and corporate support (including the Florence Family Fund, Champlin Foundation, and a 2024 EDA grant of $66,250), and education programming such as The Director's Forum (in partnership with Brown Arts Institute) and Embodied Action classes. Distribution relies on direct ticket sales via OvationTix, the box office phone line, social media (Facebook, Instagram), email, and earned media coverage in regional outlets.

The company serves New England audiences, emerging and established playwrights and artists, working actors and students, and a broad Providence-area community. Strategic partners include Brown Arts Institute, AFRI Productions, The Public's Radio, and the WaterFire Arts Center. Technology is limited to standard theatrical production tools and a third-party ticketing platform; no proprietary technology or AI capabilities are disclosed. The company has produced 100+ workshop and full-scale productions and is currently in its 16th season (2026/27).

Name

The Wilbury Theatre Group

Legal name

The Wilbury Theatre Group

Website

https://thewilburygroup.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Wilbury Theatre Group is a not-for-profit professional theatre company in Providence, RI, producing contemporary plays, the annual Providence Fringe Festival, and new work development (Studio W) for New England audiences, artists, and students under an Actors' Equity agreement.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Live Theatre / Performing Arts

NAICS

Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters (71111), Performing Arts Companies (7111)

akta.pro primary industry

Regional & Repertory Theatre Companies (MPAGABAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Classical & Contemporary Theatre (Plays/Drama) (MPAGABAH), Fringe & Experimental Performing Arts (MPAGABAI), Musical Theatre (Non-Broadway/Fringe) (MPAGABAG)

Keywords

• Professional theater productions
• Live performing arts
• Fringe theater festival
• Theater education programs
• New work development

Headquarters

HQ city

Providence

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Ticket Sales: Revenue from single ticket purchases for main series productions, special performances, and events. Standard admission priced at $38, with tiered pay-what-you-can options ranging from $10 to $55.
2. Season Memberships: Annual and seasonal membership programs providing admission to all main series productions, free ticket exchanges, access to additional performances, and member-only special events. Sold on annual/billing cycle basis.
3. Donations and Fundraising: Tax-deductible contributions from individual donors supporting the not-for-profit theatre company's operations, productions, and community programs.
4. Grants and Corporate Support: Funding from organizations including the Florence Family Fund, Susan F. Gonsalves Charitable Fund, Henry Gonsalves Family Fund, and various corporate sponsors. Includes support from Arts & Culture Tourism Providence and GoProvidence.
5. Education Programs and Classes: Revenue from theatre education classes and workshops for working actors to emerging thespians, including The Director's Forum application fees and Embodied Action sessions.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Wilbury Theatre Group is a not-for-profit professional theater company that produces live theatrical performances, including an annual Main Series season of contemporary plays, world premieres, regional premieres, and reimagined classics, staged in its black-box theater at the WaterFire Arts Center in Providence, RI. Beyond Main Series productions, the company runs the annual Providence Fringe Festival (FringePVD), the Studio W new works development program, theatre classes and workshops, pay-what-you-can ticketing, season memberships, and audio-play/podcast productions developed with partner organizations.

Product overview

The Wilbury Theatre Group is a professional, not-for-profit theatre company offering live theatrical productions and arts education programs. The company's core offerings include Main Series seasons (featuring contemporary plays, world premieres, and reimagined classics), the annual Providence Fringe Festival (FringePVD), and Studio W new works development program. Additional offerings include classes and workshops (The Director's Forum, Embodied Action), the Access for All pay-what-you-can ticketing program, season memberships, and community engagement initiatives. The company also produces special performances, audio plays like God Talks to an Agnostic, and streaming content. Located inside the WaterFire Arts Center in Providence, RI, the company operates under a collective bargaining agreement with Actors' Equity Association.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Providence Fringe Festival: New England's preeminent fringe theatre festival, founded by The Wilbury Theatre Group in 2014.
• Studio W

Products and services

• Main Series Productions Annual season of professional live theatre productions featuring contemporary plays, world premieres, regional premieres, New England premieres, and reimagined classics, presented to New England theatre audiences at the WaterFire Arts Center black box in Providence, RI.
• Providence Fringe Festival (FringePVD)
• Studio W New Works Program New Work Development program — described as the only one of its kind in Rhode Island — that takes local artists' work from idea to script to workshop to production, with residencies and development support for playwrights.
• Classes and Workshops Theatre education programming including The Director's Forum (revolving roundtable with Founder/Artistic Director Josh Short, in collaboration with Brown Arts Institute), Embodied Action acting classes for all levels, and customized outreach workshops for partner organizations and schools.
• Season Membership Annual subscription membership providing admission to all Main Series productions in the season, free ticket exchanges, access to additional performances, and member-only special events for individual theatre patrons.
• God Talks to an Agnostic (Audio Play Podcast) Twelve-part audio play written and directed by Don Mays, exploring the impact of religion on race, Black culture, and faith, presented in collaboration with AFRI Productions and The Public's Radio.

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Brown Arts InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on The Director's Forum, a revolving roundtable discussion of theory and practice led by Josh Short. Also supports other educational programming and initiatives.
• AFRI ProductionscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on God Talks to An Agnostic, an innovative twelve-part audio play exploring the impact of religion on race and culture.
• The Public's RadiocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for God Talks to An Agnostic audio play distribution and promotional support for the audio drama series.
• Spirits Go Blah productionsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on NOISE by César Alvarez, a participatory theatrical celebration and musical-in-the-making presented by Wilbury Theatre Group.
• Providence After School AllianceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner for outreach programming bringing theatre education to after-school programs.
• Providence City ArtsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partner for youth theatre education and arts programming.
• Rhode Island Dept. of HealthminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization for theatre-based community health and education initiatives.
• WaterFire Arts CentercoreOthersThe Wilbury Theatre Group operates from 475 Valley Street inside the WaterFire Arts Center, their primary performance venue and headquarters location.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Trinity Repertory Company: Providence's flagship regional theater and Tony Award–winning institution; directly comparable as a Rhode Island-based professional theater producing a season of contemporary and classic plays with Equity contracts, competing for the same audience and donor base.
• The Gamm Theatre: Regional professional theater based in Warwick, RI, producing a mainstage season of contemporary and classic plays; comparable in scale, regional footprint, and Equity-affiliated professional model to Wilbury.
• Merrimack Repertory Theatre: Professional regional theater in Lowell, MA producing contemporary plays and new works; closely comparable mid-size LORT-style operation competing for New England audiences and playwright development.
• Portland Stage Company: Professional LORT theater in Portland, Maine producing a subscription season of contemporary and classic works; comparable regional scale, mission, and Equity contract structure.
• Lyric Stage Company of Boston: Boston-based professional regional theater producing a mainstage season of contemporary and classic works; comparable mid-size Equity-affiliated operation with overlapping audience geography in New England.
• Barrington Stage Company: Professional regional theater in Pittsfield, MA known for new works development and premieres; comparable in emphasis on contemporary programming and new play development, similar scale and mission.

Broad incumbents

• Huntington Theatre Company: Boston's leading professional regional theater and Tony Award winner for Outstanding Regional Theatre; serves the broader New England market that overlaps with Wilbury's audience pool, with significantly larger budget and subscription base.
• Hartford Stage: Tony Award–winning regional theater in Hartford, CT with a national profile and Tony-winning productions; broader New England market overlap but materially larger institution than Wilbury.
• Actors Theatre of Louisville: National leader in new play development through the Humana Festival; while significantly larger, it serves as an aspirational comparable for Wilbury's Studio W new-work development mission.

Emerging players

• Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company: Washington, D.C.–based theater renowned for bold, provocative contemporary productions; comparable artistic positioning and boundary-pushing brand identity, though at a larger scale and national profile.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/thewilburygroup
• Instagraminstagram.com/thewilburygroup
• Xx.com/thewilburygroup

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors2 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Wilbury Theatre Group