City Lit Theater

Name

City Lit Theater

Legal name

City Lit Theater Company

Website

https://citylit.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1979

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Performing Arts

NAICS

Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters (71111)

akta.pro primary industry

Regional & Repertory Theatre Companies (MPAGABAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Theater & Performing Arts Venue Operations (Playhouses, Opera Houses) (MPAGALAB), Classical & Contemporary Theatre (Plays/Drama) (MPAGABAH)

Keywords

• Live theatrical performances
• Literary stage adaptations
• Theater venue rentals
• Performing arts nonprofit
• Season subscriptions

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

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: Individual show tickets sold through the box office and online ticketing platform. Prices vary by production.
2. Season Subscriptions: 4-show subscription at $112 or 4-show preview subscription at $88, offering flexibility, reserved seating, and discounts on additional tickets.
3. Donations: Tax-deductible contributions from patrons and donors at various levels (Friends $5-$99, Donors $100-$249, Colleagues $500-$999, Patrons $1,000+).
4. Institutional Grants and Corporate Sponsorship: Support from foundations including Alphawood Foundation, Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, Ivanhoe Theater Foundation, and corporate sponsors.
5. Venue Rentals: Theater space rental at $950/week and rehearsal space at $15/hour for external productions.
6. Fundraising Events: Special events including HamBINGO, quiz nights, spring teas, and movie screenings that generate donations and community engagement.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

City Lit Theater produces four full-length mainstage productions per season in its 99-seat black box theater in Chicago's Edgewater neighborhood, focused on stage adaptations of literary material, classic plays, and world premieres. It supplements these productions with theater and rehearsal space rentals, the Books on the Chopping Block banned-books reading program, the VIVERO Latiné playwrights' residency, the City Lit at the Movies film series, season subscriptions, and fundraising events. All offerings are delivered through a single storefront venue housed inside the Edgewater Presbyterian Church.

Product overview

City Lit Theater is a nonprofit theater company operating as a single-venue presenter with multiple service offerings. The core product is its main stage theatrical productions (four full-length shows per season in a 99-seat black box theater), supplemented by venue rentals (theater space at $950/week and rehearsal spaces at $15/hour), subscription packages, and community programs including the Books on the Chopping Block banned books reading series, The VIVERO Latiné playwrights' residency, and the City Lit at the Movies film series. The company also hosts fundraising events and maintains partnerships with local restaurants and parking services for patron convenience.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Main Stage Productions Four full-length theatrical productions staged per season in City Lit's 99-seat black box theater, focused on stage adaptations of literary material, classic plays, and world premieres, for Chicago theater audiences.
• Theater Space Rental

Quantifiable outcome

• Multiple Jeff Award nominations and wins across productions
• +1 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 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, primary, minor and major.

• The VIVEROcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024The VIVERO is a playwrights' group in residence at City Lit, founded by Esteban Andres Cruz, Kidany Camilo, and Nelson A. Rodriguez. It means 'nursery' in Spanish and is dedicated to excellence in Latiné dramatic literature. The group cultivates voices and harvests new plays celebrating stories of the Latiné diaspora through bi-weekly virtual sessions, workshops, and public presentations.
• Edgewater Presbyterian ChurchcoreOthersHosts City Lit Theater on its second floor, providing the venue for all productions. City Lit's theater space is located in this church building.
• Burke's Public HouseprimaryGTM or Marketing PartnerPremium Eating & Drinking season sponsor located at 5401 N. Broadway Ave. A neighborhood sports pub that partners with City Lit for pre-show dining, hosting fundraising events like Quiz Day, and providing support for the theater community.
• La PharmacieminorGTM or Marketing PartnerEating & drinking partner at 5545 N. Sheridan Road. Cocktails, beer and bites before or after shows, open until midnight on Fridays & Saturdays.
• Goodman TheatremajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner for Disillusioned world premiere play, which was developed through Goodman Theatre's New Stages Residency. This collaboration supports new play development.
• St. Andrew's Greek Orthodox ChurchminorOthersProvides parking for City Lit patrons at $10 per vehicle, located at 5649 N. Sheridan Rd., just around the corner from the theater.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Lifeline Theatre: Chicago-based nonprofit theater that, like City Lit, specializes in stage adaptations of literary material. Most directly comparable peer given overlapping artistic mission, similar storefront scale, and shared Chicago literary-adaptation niche.
• Raven Theatre: Chicago storefront nonprofit theater of comparable scale and intimate-venue model. Particularly relevant given that City Lit's current Executive Artistic Director Brian Pastor previously served as Executive Director at Raven.
• A Red Orchid Theatre: Long-running Chicago storefront theater producing an intimate-venue season of contemporary and classical work. Comparable to City Lit in scale, single-venue operating model, and reliance on Chicago nonprofit funding ecosystem.
• Redtwist Theatre: Small Chicago storefront theater operating on a similar intimate-scale, four-to-five-show season model. Overlaps with City Lit in target audience, pricing, and dependence on local grants and donor support.
• The Hypocrites: Chicago storefront company known for literary/classical adaptations and reimagined texts. Comparable artistic mission to City Lit's literary-adaptation focus and similar intimate-venue operating profile.
• Theater Wit: Chicago storefront theater programming a multi-show season of contemporary work. Comparable to City Lit in single-venue scale, city footprint, and reliance on the Chicago small-theater funding and audience ecosystem.
• Lookingglass Theatre Company: Chicago-based theater with established literary and adaptation-driven programming at intimate-to-mid scale. Comparable to City Lit in artistic mission and Chicago footprint, though historically larger and more established.
• Silk Road Rising: Small Chicago storefront theater focused on diverse voices and new works, including dedicated programming residencies. Comparable to City Lit in scale, mission orientation toward under-represented dramatic literature, and reliance on Chicago arts-foundation support.

Broad incumbents

• Goodman Theatre: Major Chicago regional theater and explicit co-development partner of City Lit (e.g., Disillusioned world premiere via the New Stages Residency). Much larger scale but directly relevant as a peer institution and partner for new play development.
• Northlight Theatre: Established Chicago regional theater producing both classics and new work for broader suburban and city audiences. Comparable to City Lit in theatrical programming orientation but operates at a meaningfully larger scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/citylittheater
• Facebookfacebook.com/CityLitTheater
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/city-lit-theater

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 City Lit Theater