Cleveland Public Theatre

What Cleveland Public Theatre does

Cleveland Public Theatre (CPT) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit performing arts organization founded in 1983 by James Levin and headquartered at 6415 Detroit Avenue in Cleveland's Gordon Square Arts District. The organization operates four physical venues — Gordon Square Theatre, James Levin Theatre, Church, and Parish Hall — and produces a portfolio of theatrical performances, contemporary dance (DanceWorks), and new play development programming (Test Flight, SoftLaunch, The Dark Room). CPT also runs education programs including the Student Theatre Enrichment Program (STEP) for youth ages 14-19, the Y-Haven Theatre Project in partnership with the YMCA of Greater Cleveland for recovery community participants (26-year partnership), and Cleveland Act Now. The organization operates three community ensembles: Teatro Público de Cleveland (Spanish-language), Masrah Cleveland Al-Arabi (Arabic-language, مسرح كليفلاند العربي), and Cleveland CORE Ensemble, an experimental physical theatre ensemble led by Executive Artistic Director Raymond Bobgan.

CPT's revenue model is diversified across multiple nonprofit income streams: ticket sales (including a unique "Choose What You Pay" pricing model on every ticket where patrons determine their own price), season subscriptions, education program fees, venue and space rentals, individual donations, foundation grants (Cleveland Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, Ohio Arts Council, Cuyahoga Arts & Culture, Nord Family Foundation, Martha Holden Jennings Foundation), and corporate sponsorships. The annual Pandemonium gala is the signature fundraising event at $195 per all-inclusive ticket. The organization is currently conducting a $12M capital campaign for facility improvements and expanded programming.

CPT distributes programming through its owned box office (phone, in-person, online), a website (cptonline.org), and a multi-channel digital marketing presence (Facebook, Twitter/X, Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, email newsletter). It holds a Charity Navigator Four-Star Rating and GuideStar Transparency Seal. The organization has 11-50 employees and operates exclusively in the Cleveland, Ohio metropolitan area. There is no proprietary technology stack disclosed; operations rely on standard nonprofit ticketing and donor management systems.

Name

Cleveland Public Theatre

Legal name

Cleveland Public Theatre

Website

https://cptonline.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1983

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Cleveland Public Theatre is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit performing arts organization in Cleveland, Ohio that produces theatrical performances, contemporary dance, new play development, and education programs (youth and recovery community) across four venues in the Gordon Square Arts District, supported by ticket sales, donations, grants, and corporate sponsorships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Performing Arts / Live Theatre Services

NAICS

Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters (71111), Performing Arts Companies (7111), Performing Arts, Spectator Sports, and Related Industries (711)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Performing Arts Centers & Presenters (Programming/Booking) (MPAGABAM)

akta.pro secondary industries

Performing Arts Organizations (Theater, Dance, Opera, Music) (BPAGAHAB), Theater, Musicals & Performing Arts (THAJAFAB), Theater & Performing Arts Venue Operations (Playhouses, Opera Houses) (MPAGALAB), Children’s & Youth Theatre (MPAGABAE)

Keywords

• Live theatrical performances
• Performing arts education
• Community theatre programming
• New play development
• Nonprofit arts organization

Headquarters

HQ city

Cleveland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Ticket Sales: Revenue from individual performance tickets, season subscriptions, and special events. 'Choose What You Pay' pricing model allows customers to determine their own ticket price.
2. Donations and Contributions: Tax-deductible charitable contributions from individuals, foundations, and corporations. Annual fundraising campaign supporting artistic programs and education initiatives.
3. Benefit Events: Annual Pandemonium gala featuring all-inclusive tickets ($195), with proceeds supporting artistic work and education programs.
4. Education Programs: Revenue from youth and adult education programming including STEP, adult classes, and workshops.
5. Space Rentals: Theatre space and venue rentals to external groups for events and performances.
6. Special Benefit Performances: Ticketed benefit performances such as Y-Haven Theatre Project benefit ($100 tickets including appetizer reception).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Cleveland Public Theatre produces and presents live theatrical performances, dance showcases, and new play development programs across two main venues (Gordon Square Theatre and James Levin Theatre) in Cleveland's Gordon Square Arts District. The organization also delivers youth and adult education programs, operates three culturally specific community ensembles (Spanish, Arabic, and experimental physical theatre), and hosts annual cultural and fundraising events. Revenue is generated through ticket sales, donations, grants, sponsorships, education fees, and venue rentals.

Product overview

Cleveland Public Theatre (CPT) is a performing arts organization operating a multi-venue complex in Cleveland's Gordon Square Arts District. The organization offers a portfolio of produced theatrical performances across Gordon Square Theatre and James Levin Theatre, supplemented by new play development programs (Test Flight, SoftLaunch), the DanceWorks dance series, and education programs (Student Theatre Enrichment Program for youth, Y-Haven Theatre Project for recovery communities). CPT also operates three community ensembles—Teatro Público de Cleveland (Spanish-language), Masrah Cleveland Al-Arabi (Arabic-language), and Cleveland CORE Ensemble—alongside annual events including the Pandemonium fundraising festival and Día de Muertos cultural celebration. The organization provides box office services for ticket sales.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Pandemonium: Annual signature fundraising event transforming the CPT campus into a labyrinth of theatre, dance, visual art, and performance, featuring food, valet, and drinks. Proceeds benefit CPT's artistic work and education programs.
• Student Theatre Enrichment Program (STEP)
• Y-Haven Theatre Project
• Cleveland Act Now (CAN)
• Test Flight
• DanceWorks
• The Dark Room
• Cleveland CORE Ensemble

Products and services

• Produced Performances (Mainstage Season) Mainstage theatrical productions created or presented by CPT, including world premieres, contemporary plays, dance performances, and special events across multiple venues, targeted at general performing arts audiences in Northeast Ohio.
• Test Flight Multi-week new play development series that showcases emerging work on its way to full production, providing local and national artists with theatre access and co-production opportunities. Supported by The Nord Family Foundation.
• SoftLaunch + The PILOT Project Performance festival and conference featuring immersive installations and intimate performances, supporting new work development and experimental theatre for local and visiting artists.
• DanceWorks Multi-week showcase series presenting Northeast Ohio's most innovative contemporary dance companies, featuring premieres and repertory works for general audiences. Tickets from $10–$80 with 'Choose What You Pay' options available.
• Student Theatre Enrichment Program (STEP) Eight-week summer program for youth ages 14-19 where participants create, produce, perform, and tour their own original plays, developing job skills, academic achievement, and interpersonal skills.
• Y-Haven Theatre Project Long-running partnership program with Y-Haven (a branch of the YMCA of Greater Cleveland) where CPT collaborates with adults in recovery to create original theatre productions sharing stories of recovery and personal triumph, with $100 benefit tickets including appetizer reception.
• Teatro Público de Cleveland Resident community ensemble producing and presenting Spanish-language and bilingual theatre productions for Hispanic/Latino audiences in Greater Cleveland.
• Masrah Cleveland Al-Arabi (مسرح كليفلاند العربي) Resident community ensemble offering Arabic-language theatre workshops and performances for people with heritage from Arabic-speaking communities, open to all experience levels.
• Cleveland CORE Ensemble Ensemble led by Raymond Bobgan creating bold, multilayered, highly physical performances through an ever-evolving ensemble process, producing works internationally with fierce physicality, acapella song, and poetry.
• Pandemonium (Annual Fundraising Gala) Annual September fundraising event transforming the CPT campus into a labyrinth of theatre, dance, visual art, and performance, featuring local food and drinks. All-inclusive $195 tickets with $105 tax-deductible portion; proceeds benefit CPT's artistic work and education programs.
• Día de Muertos Ohio (Day of the Dead Cultural Celebration) Annual free cultural celebration honoring the memory of deceased loved ones, featuring altar installations, Latin food, live music, folk art market, and entertainment. Co-presented with Día de Muertos Ohio with artistic direction by Héctor Castellanos Lara.
• Box Office Services & Season Subscriptions Ticket purchasing, season subscription services, and customer support for performances via phone, online, and in-person box office at 6415 Detroit Avenue, Cleveland, OH. Every ticket is offered on a 'Choose What You Pay' basis.
• Theatre Venue Rentals Rental of CPT's facilities (Gordon Square Theatre, James Levin Theatre, Church, Parish Hall) to external organizations for events, performances, and gatherings. Both ADA-compliant theatres with accessible entrances, elevators, and restrooms.

Quantifiable outcome

• 26-year partnership with Y-Haven creating original theatre with recovery community participants
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Y-Haven (YMCA of Greater Cleveland)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 199926-year partnership creating original theatre productions with Y-Haven clients in recovery. CPT collaborates with clients to create powerful stories of recovery and personal triumph, with authentic emotional power as cast shares true-to-life experiences.
• Near West TheatrecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1999Partner in Gordon Square Arts District initiative launched in 1999 with CPT Founder James Levin and Detroit Shoreway Executive Director Jeff Ramsey.
• Ohio City Theatre ProjectcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-production partnership on theatrical productions such as 'Central Concern' presented at CPT.
• Día de Muertos OhiocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAnnual co-presentation of Día de Muertos (Day of the Dead) celebration featuring artistic direction by Héctor Castellanos Lara, altar installations, Latin food, live music, and folk art market.
• Cleveland CORE EnsemblecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOngoing ensemble creating experimental performances through ever-evolving ensemble process led by Raymond Bobgan. Produces immersive theatrical experiences with fierce physicality, acapella song, and poetry.
• Micro Theater CLEminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-producer Jonathon Morgan is also a producer of Micro Theater CLE, a pop-up festival of short performances in small spaces throughout Cleveland.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Near West Theatre: Community theater and Gordon Square Arts District partner founded alongside CPT. Operates in the same neighborhood with comparable community-ensemble, youth-education, and nonprofit model.
• Great Lakes Theater: Cleveland-based professional theater producing classical and contemporary productions. Most directly comparable local peer sharing the Cleveland market, similar nonprofit model, and overlapping season-ticket audience.
• Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company: DC-based nonprofit producing bold, experimental new work. Comparable in mission (innovative contemporary theater), operating model (nonprofit with new-play development), and audience positioning.
• Mixed Blood Theatre: Minneapolis-based nonprofit theater with a mission centered on diverse communities, cultural equity, and radical inclusion. Comparable cultural-specific ensemble structure and community-anchored nonprofit model.
• Geva Theatre Center: Rochester, NY-based regional theater producing a mainstage season plus new-work development. Comparable regional nonprofit producing theater with similar scale and programming breadth.
• Actors Theatre of Louisville: Mid-size regional nonprofit theater famous for the Humana Festival of New American Plays. Direct peer in new-play development programming (analogous to CPT's Test Flight).
• Pangea World Theater: Minneapolis-based nonprofit producing multilingual, culturally specific theater from diaspora communities. Closest analog to CPT's Teatro Público and Masrah Cleveland Al-Arabi community-ensemble model.
• People's Light Theatre Company: Malvern, PA-based nonprofit producing theater with strong education and community engagement programs. Comparable mix of mainstage production and youth/community education programming.

Broad incumbents

• Steppenwolf Theatre Company: Chicago-based ensemble theater known for bold, ensemble-driven and physically demanding new work. Closest analog to CPT's Cleveland CORE Ensemble aesthetic and ensemble-creation methodology.
• Playhouse Square: Cleveland's largest performing arts center and the city's dominant theater operator. Much larger scale but the primary venue-based incumbent competing for the same Northeast Ohio arts audience and donor dollars.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/CPTCLE
• Facebookfacebook.com/ClevelandPublicTheatre
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cleveland-public-theatre/mycompany/?viewAsMember=true
• Instagraminstagram.com/cptcle
• TikToktiktok.com/@cptcle

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries4 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 Cleveland Public Theatre