Oakland Theater Project

What Oakland Theater Project does

Oakland Theater Project is a 501(c)(3) non-profit professional theater company (EIN 46-5365654) based at 1501 Martin Luther King Jr Way in Oakland, California, producing mainstage theatrical works, site-specific productions, and co-productions across the San Francisco Bay Area. Founded in 2012 with summer festivals beginning in 2013 and an inaugural season in 2016, the company rebranded from Ubuntu Theater Project around 2019. It runs roughly six to seven productions per season, including world premieres, Bay Area and West Coast premieres, and reimagined classics from playwrights such as Lorraine Hansberry, Tony Kushner, and Marcus Gardley, often staged at non-traditional venues including the historical 16th Street Station in West Oakland. During COVID-19 it developed drive-in and outdoor performance formats plus virtual and livestream options. The technical stack comprises conventional theatrical production technology - lighting design (notably by Resident Lighting Designer Dr. Stephanie Anne Johnson), projection and video design, and sound design - with no disclosed proprietary software platform or AI components; ticketing runs on OvationTix.

The company's offerings comprise mainstage productions, site-specific performances, season subscriptions (2-play $55, 3-play $75, and 6-play tiers at $150 general admission, $250 priority, and $50-$75 pay-what-you-can), single and pay-what-you-can tickets ($10-$60), the OTP Fellowship program for emerging artists, and ancillary programming such as the Luminaries Conversation Series and Book Club + Film Club. Served audiences include Bay Area theater-goers, arts patrons and donors, and social impact-minded community members, with partnerships supporting community-facing work such as Down Here Below for Oakland's unhoused residents.

Revenue is generated from four streams: ticket sales (covering approximately 50% of production costs), individual donations across tiers from $500 Supporter to $20,000+ Company Sponsor, corporate and foundation grants (California Arts Council, National Endowment for the Arts, Hewlett Foundation, Kenneth Rainin Foundation, Gerbode Foundation, City of Oakland, California Humanities, Zellerbach Foundation, and a disclosed $50,000 from Latino Community Foundation in 2023), and production sponsorships ($5,000-$10,000+). Because ticket revenue covers only half of production costs, the model structurally depends on philanthropic subsidization. Distribution is direct-to-consumer via OvationTix with channel partnerships through Marin Shakespeare Company (San Rafael), ODC Theater (San Francisco), and California Shakespeare Theater (Bruns Amphitheater, Orinda), and the company is governed by a Board of Directors with leadership shared between Executive & Co-Artistic Director Michael Moran and Co-Artistic Director William Hodgson, supported by Managing Director Colin Mandlin.

Name

Oakland Theater Project

Legal name

Oakland Theater Project

Website

https://oaklandtheaterproject.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Oakland Theater Project is a 501(c)(3) non-profit professional theater company in Oakland, California, producing mainstage productions, site-specific works, and world premieres with reimaged classics, using pay-what-you-can pricing to advance radical inclusivity for Bay Area audiences.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Live Theater / Performing Arts

NAICS

Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters (711110), Performing Arts Companies (7111), Other Performing Arts Companies (71119)

akta.pro primary industry

Classical & Contemporary Theatre (Plays/Drama) (MPAGABAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Theater, Musicals & Performing Arts (THAJAFAB), Performing Arts Centers & Presenters (Programming/Booking) (MPAGABAM)

Keywords

• Live theater productions
• Site-specific performances
• Pay-what-you-can tickets
• Performing arts nonprofit
• Season subscriptions

Headquarters

HQ city

Oakland

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, Others

Revenue model

1. Ticket Sales: Ticket sales cover approximately 50% of production costs. The company offers individual tickets, subscriptions (2-play, 3-play, and 6-play packages), and pay-what-you-can options at various price points ranging from $10-$60.
2. Individual Donations: Individual donor contributions at various giving levels from $500 (Supporter) up to $20,000+ (Company Sponsor). Benefits include donor circle happy hours, priority tickets, and rehearsal access.
3. Corporate/Foundation Grants: Major institutional funding from organizations including California Arts Council, National Endowment for the Arts, Hewlett Foundation, Kenneth Rainin Foundation, and others supporting productions and operations.
4. Production Sponsorships: Corporate sponsorships at various levels including Production Sponsor ($5,000-$7,499), Dual Production Sponsor ($7,500-$9,999), and Season Sponsor ($10,000+).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Oakland Theater Project produces and presents professional live theatrical performances at its downtown Oakland venue (FLAX Art & Design, 1501 Martin Luther King Jr Way) and at partner venues across the San Francisco Bay Area. Offerings include mainstage productions (classics, world premieres, West Coast and Bay Area premieres), site-specific performances at non-traditional community locations, drive-in and livestream/video-on-demand formats, season subscriptions, and the OTP Fellowship for emerging artists. Every production is offered on a pay-what-you-can basis to remove financial barriers to attendance.

Product overview

Oakland Theater Project is a nonprofit theater company offering live theatrical productions with a mission of radical inclusivity. The company's core offering consists of mainstage theatrical productions presented at FLAX Art & Design in Oakland, supplemented by site-specific performances at various community locations. The organization operates on a pay-what-you-can ticketing model to ensure accessibility, supported by season subscription packages in multiple tiers. Additional offerings include the OTP Fellowship program for emerging artists and video on-demand streaming options for select productions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Oakland Theater Project Mainstage Productions Professional theatrical productions presented at the company's mainstage venue at FLAX Art & Design in Oakland (1501 Martin Luther King Jr Way), featuring classic plays, world premieres, and works that explore themes of community, social justice, and human connection for Bay Area theater audiences.
• Site-Specific Theatrical Productions Productions performed at non-traditional venues including the historical 16th Street Station in West Oakland, parking garages, art galleries, schools, and community locations to bring theater directly to audiences through immersive theatrical experiences in community spaces.
• Drive-In and Virtual Performance Productions Drive-in theater and virtual performance productions developed during COVID-19, including video-on-demand and livestream options for productions such as The Waste Land, expanding access for audiences unable to attend in person.
• Oakland Theater Project Season Subscriptions Subscription packages for multiple productions across a season, with priority subscriptions providing reserved seating and general admission / pay-what-you-can options, sold to individual theatergoers across the Bay Area.

Quantifiable outcome

• Pay-what-you-can tickets available for every production, removing financial barriers to attendance

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Ferocious Lotus Theatre CompanycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAssociation with Ferocious Lotus Theatre Company for West Coast Premiere of Endlings by Celine Song. Ferocious Lotus creates opportunities for Asian and Asian American theatre artists in the San Francisco Bay Area.
• New Performance TraditionscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-production partner for Ghost Quartet by Dave Malloy, with performances at Oakland Theater Project and ODC in San Francisco.
• Marin Shakespeare CompanycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-production partnership for Angels in America Parts I & II and 2025 Hamlet production, performed at Marin Shakespeare Company's new 165-seat indoor theater in San Rafael.
• California Shakespeare TheatercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Marcus Gardley's modern version of King Lear and A Thousand Ships production, staged at Cal Shakes' Bruns Amphitheater in Orinda.
• Peralta Hacienda Historical ParkminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-production with Peralta Hacienda Historical Park for Teatro Jornalero/Day Laborers Theater documentary theater performance.
• Laney College Fusion Theatre ProjectminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-production between Ubuntu Theater Project and Laney College's Fusion Theatre Project and Theatre Arts Department for Más play.
• Inferno TheatreminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-production with Inferno Theatre for Conference of the Birds by Sholeh Wolpé.
• East Oakland CollectivecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership connecting Down Here Below production with the 9,000+ unhoused people in Oakland, accepting donations and volunteer support for homeless populations.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• SF Playhouse: A San Francisco mid-size nonprofit theater producing a mix of classics, premieres, and musicals for Bay Area audiences. Comparable in size and programming mix, competing for the same donor and subscription audiences.
• California Shakespeare Theater (Cal Shakes): East Bay-based theater company producing classical and contemporary work at the Bruns Amphitheater in Orinda. A direct partner of Oakland Theater Project (King Lear, A Thousand Ships) and direct peer competing for Bay Area audiences, donors, and foundation funding.
• Marin Shakespeare Company: A regional theater in San Rafael producing Shakespeare and classic plays at a 165-seat indoor theater. Direct partner of Oakland Theater Project (Hamlet, Angels in America) and peer competing for Bay Area audiences and Shakespeare-classics programming.
• Berkeley Repertory Theatre: A Tony Award-winning regional theater company based in Berkeley that produces a mix of premieres, classics, and musicals for Bay Area audiences. Directly comparable as a peer theater company competing for the same audience, donor, and grant pool in the East Bay.
• Shotgun Players: Berkeley-based nonprofit theater company with a strong community engagement and accessibility focus, producing classics and new works. Directly comparable community-anchored nonprofit model and East Bay audience overlap with Oakland Theater Project.
• Campo Santo: A Bay Area-based new-works theater company focused on stories by and about people of color, resident at YBCA in San Francisco. Comparable mission of diverse storytelling and identity-focused programming, sharing the Bay Area's small-theater ecosystem.
• Magic Theatre: San Francisco-based nonprofit theater known for developing new plays and championing diverse voices (Sam Shepard premieres, among others). Comparable mission of new-work development and social relevance, competing for similar Bay Area audiences and arts funding.
• TheatreWorks Silicon Valley: A Tony Award-winning regional theater in Palo Alto producing new works, musicals, and classics for Bay Area audiences. Comparable programming breadth, donor-driven nonprofit model, and competition for foundation funding in the broader Bay Area.

Broad incumbents

• Center Theatre Group: Los Angeles-based nonprofit operating the Ahmanson, Mark Taper Forum, and Kirk Douglas Theatre, one of the largest regional theater companies in the U.S. Comparable nonprofit producing model but at much greater scale; relevant peer for understanding programming, donor development, and foundation funding dynamics.
• American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.): San Francisco's flagship Tony Award-winning theater company, operating multiple venues and a conservatory training program. Larger incumbent offering overlapping classical and contemporary programming; competes for Bay Area audiences, donors, and major foundation grants.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks1 record

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/watch?v=4cBIO5e11_A
• Xx.com/oakland_theater
• Facebookfacebook.com/OaklandTheaterProject

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles19 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

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 Oakland Theater Project