Silk Road Rising
Silk Road Rising (operating as Silk Road Cultural Center) is a Chicago-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit arts organization that commissions and produces video plays, documentaries, animated shorts, and educational programs serving Pan-Asian, North African, and Muslim communities and partner schools.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2002
- HeadquartersIllinois City, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Silk Road Rising does
Silk Road Rising, operating as Silk Road Cultural Center, is a Chicago-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit interdisciplinary arts organization founded in 2002 by Jamil Khoury and Malik Gillani. The organization commissions and produces live and digital artistic works — video plays, documentaries, animated shorts, and community stories — rooted in Pan-Asian, North African, and Muslim experiences and aimed at fostering cross-cultural understanding. Its foundational technology is the "video play" genre, which Silk Road coined in 2011, blending live theatre aesthetics with digital filmmaking for online distribution; the portfolio now spans titles including both/and, Multi Meets Poly, the Mosque Alert collection, Obstacle Course, Sacred Stages, Not Quite White, The Four Hijabs, The COVID Monologues, Black Teen Lives Matter, and the West Ridge Story Festival, alongside educational programs EPIC and Myths to Drama and the Evolve podcast produced by its wholly-owned think-and-create tank, the Polycultural Institute.
The organization is structured as the Gilloury Institute, with Silk Road Cultural Center as its primary doing-business-as name, and has been theatre-in-residence at the First United Methodist Church at the Chicago Temple since 2004. It is funded through a mix of tax-deductible individual donations (including the recurring Bridge Builder monthly giving program), foundation and corporate grants (Allstate, Field, Joyce, MacArthur), government arts agency support (NEA, Illinois Arts Council, Chicago DCASE), and gifts of appreciated stock facilitated through the United Methodist Foundation of the Northern Illinois Conference; all programming is offered free to audiences, and board members contribute $1,200 annually. Distribution is multi-channel: free streaming on silkroadculturalcenter.org, podcast platforms (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, Pocket Casts), community screenings, and curricular integration at partner schools and universities.
The organization serves diverse audiences including Pan-Asian, North African, and Muslim communities; K-12 and higher-education institutions (Chicago Public Schools, Knox College, Tufts University, Valparaiso University, American University of Beirut); and community partners such as PFLAG and Al-Nour Mosque Hamburg. Since 2019, founding Executive Director Malik Gillani has been living with aphasia following a heart attack and stroke, and the organization has expanded programming around aphasia arts through the Aphasia Arts Forum. The organization rebranded from Silk Road Theatre Project to Silk Road Rising in 2022 while continuing operations under its DBA Silk Road Cultural Center.
Silk Road Rising firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Silk Road Rising
- Legal name
- Gilloury Institute
- Website
- https://silkroadculturalcenter.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2002
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Silk Road Rising (operating as Silk Road Cultural Center) is a Chicago-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit arts organization that commissions and produces video plays, documentaries, animated shorts, and educational programs serving Pan-Asian, North African, and Muslim communities and partner schools.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Silk Road Rising industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Performing Arts
- NAICS
- Performing Arts Companies (7111), Motion Picture and Video Industries (5121), Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation (71)
- SIC
- Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Production (7812), Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900), Services-Allied To Motion Picture Production (7819)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Fringe & Experimental Performing Arts (MPAGABAI)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Live-Action International/Co-Production & Service Production (MPADABAG), Cultural Heritage & Traditional Festivals (Folk, Ethnic, Indigenous) (MPAGAEAB)
Keywords
Where Silk Road Rising is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Illinois City
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Silk Road Rising business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others
Revenue model
- Donations and Contributions: Tax-deductible donations from individuals through the Bridge Builder monthly giving program, one-time gifts, and legacy/estate giving.
- Foundation and Corporate Grants: Funding from foundations including Allstate Foundation, Field Foundation, Joyce Foundation, MacArthur Foundation, and corporate sponsors.
- Government Arts Funding: Support from National Endowment for the Arts, Illinois Arts Council Agency, and Chicago DCASE.
- Stock Gifts: Gifts of appreciated stock facilitated through United Methodist Foundation of the Northern Illinois Conference.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels5 records
Silk Road Rising product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Silk Road Rising (operating as Silk Road Cultural Center) commissions and produces live and digital artistic works rooted in Pan-Asian, North African, and Muslim experiences. Its core offerings are video plays, documentaries, animated shorts, and community stories that combine live theatre aesthetics with digital filmmaking, along with educational programs (EPIC and Myths to Drama) and the Polycultural Institute's Evolve podcast. Programming is distributed free to audiences through website streaming, podcast platforms, and partner-hosted live screenings.
Product overview
Silk Road Cultural Center is a Chicago-based interdisciplinary arts organization that produces digital media content, primarily video plays, documentaries, animated shorts, and community stories, all rooted in Pan-Asian, North African, and Muslim experiences. The core offerings include Video Plays (such as Obstacle Course, both/and, and Multi Meets Poly), Documentaries (including Sacred Stages and Not Quite White), Animated Shorts (The Four Hijabs), and Community Stories (Black Teen Lives Matter, West Ridge Story Festival, The COVID Monologues). The organization also operates the Polycultural Institute (producing the 'Evolve' podcast) and educational programs including EPIC (Empathic Playwriting Intensive Course) and Myths to Drama. The portfolio centers cultural interchange and storytelling to foster cross-cultural understanding and empathy.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Video Plays Digitally filmed theatrical productions that blend live theatre aesthetics with digital filmmaking technology, including works such as Obstacle Course, both/and, Multi Meets Poly: Multiculturalism and Polyculturalism Go on a First Date, The Mosque Alert Collection, The Balancing Arab, and The Imam and the Homosexual. Distributed free through website streaming and partner-hosted screenings for general audiences and educational institutions.
- Documentaries Documentary films that examine deeper meanings surrounding cultural, social, and political issues, often integrating dramatic scenes with academic interviews. Includes Sacred Stages: A Church, A Theatre, and A Story and Not Quite White: Arabs, Slavs, and the Contours of Contested Whiteness.
- Animated Shorts Animated short films that transform complex theoretical ideas into imaginative and engaging visual storytelling, including The Four Hijabs in both English and Arabic versions.
- Community Stories Short plays and monologues written by community participants and brought to life by professional actors, addressing local experiences and diversity. Includes Black Teen Lives Matter, West Ridge Story Festival, and The COVID Monologues.
- Polycultural Institute / Evolve Podcast Think-and-create tank that generates art and ideas advancing polyculturalism, producing the 'Evolve' podcast featuring spoken essays and conversations through a polycultural lens, distributed on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and Pocket Casts.
- EPIC (Empathic Playwriting Intensive Course) Arts education program teaching playwriting to students and adults, including English Language Learners, transforming personal experiences into dramatic narratives. The program has generated works such as the Black Teen Lives Matter video series (2017-2021).
- Myths to Drama Arts education program bringing drama techniques to elementary, middle, and high school classrooms, designed to integrate cultural storytelling into K-12 curricula.
Quantifiable outcome
- Tens of thousands of global engagements with digital content
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Silk Road Rising
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Silk Road Rising technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature2 records
Silk Road Rising partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
14 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.
- First United Methodist Church at the Chicago TemplecoreTheatre-in-residence partnership since 2004 in Pierce Hall. The church provides free space and the organization enhances it with theatre equipment. A written agreement guarantees artistic freedom and organizational independence.
- United Methodist Foundation of the Northern Illinois ConferencemajorFacilitates gifts of appreciated stock to the organization. Since 2017, has expedited nearly $1 million of appreciated stock at no cost to donors.
- Consortium of Asian American Theatres and Artists (CAATA)majorNational alliance for Asian American theatres. Jamil Khoury serves on the Board of Directors.
- Joan Mitchell CentermajorArtist-in-Residence program hosting Jamil Khoury in New Orleans.
- Knox CollegecorePlaywright-in-Residence host and venue for multiple screenings and productions.
- Tufts UniversitymajorPlaywright-in-Residence host and venue for video screenings and discussions.
- Benedictine UniversitymajorPlaywright-in-Residence host for theatrical productions and screenings.
- North Central CollegemajorPlaywright-in-Residence host for theatrical productions.
- Valparaiso UniversitycorePlaywright-in-Residence host and venue for multiple video screenings and events.
- Asian Human ServicesmajorCommunity partner for West Ridge Story Festival and Asian American services.
- About Face TheatreminorLGBTQ theatre company acknowledged in production credits.
- Dramatists GuildminorProfessional organization for playwrights supporting the organization's work.
- Say Gay PlaysminorJamil Khoury serves on the Advisory Board.
- NEIU (Northeastern Illinois University)minorEducational partner for community programming.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Silk Road Rising competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- East West Players: America's premier Asian American theater company, founded in 1965 in Los Angeles. Directly comparable as a culturally specific Asian/Middle Eastern-American theater organization producing original work and developing new voices, though larger and more established.
- Ma-Yi Theater Company: New York-based Asian American theater company producing new works. Comparable as a peer in producing original plays by Asian American playwrights and developing cross-cultural narratives, with similar nonprofit funding model and educational programming.
- Pangea World Theater: Minneapolis-based Asian American theater producing work on diaspora, social justice, and cross-cultural themes. Highly comparable mission and organizational structure to Silk Road Rising, though smaller and Midwestern.
- The Civilians: Brooklyn-based investigative theater company producing original work exploring political, social, and cultural issues. Comparable in producing documentary-theater hybrids and using art for civic dialogue, though focused on U.S. issues rather than diaspora-specific themes.
- National Asian American Theatre Company (NAATCO): New York-based nonprofit producing works about the Asian American experience. Directly comparable as a peer theater organization producing original Asian American work, with similar funding model through foundations and government arts grants.
Emerging players
- About Face Theatre: Chicago-based LGBTQ theater company acknowledged in Silk Road's production credits. Comparable as a Chicago-area culturally specific theater, though focused specifically on LGBTQ+ narratives rather than pan-Asian/Middle Eastern themes.
Broad incumbents
- Steppenwolf Theatre Company: Chicago-based Tony-winning theater company. Comparable as a Chicago theater producing socially engaged original work, but far larger in scale and not focused on diaspora cultural specificity — serves as a model for what institutional scaling could look like.
- Goodman Theatre: One of Chicago's oldest and largest nonprofit theaters producing a broad repertoire. Comparable as a Chicago-based producing theater with foundation and government arts funding, though much larger in scale and operating its own venue.
- New York Theatre Workshop: Off-Broadway theater known for developing new experimental work (e.g., Rent, Hadestown). Comparable in producing experimental, culturally distinctive theatrical productions with a nonprofit funding model, though operating at a much larger scale.
Regional players
- Silk Road Ensemble: Yo-Yo Ma-founded musical collective focused on cross-cultural collaboration along historic Silk Road routes. Comparable in mission around Silk Road cultural interchange and diaspora representation, though focused on music rather than theater and film.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Silk Road Rising social profiles
Digital presenceSilk Road Rising financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Silk Road Rising leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Silk Road Rising subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Silk Road Rising funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Silk Road Rising M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Silk Road Rising
What does Silk Road Rising do?
Silk Road Rising (operating as Silk Road Cultural Center) commissions and produces live and digital artistic works rooted in Pan-Asian, North African, and Muslim experiences. Its core offerings are video plays, documentaries, animated shorts, and community stories that combine live theatre aesthetics with digital filmmaking, along with educational programs (EPIC and Myths to Drama) and the Polycultural Institute's Evolve podcast. Programming is distributed free to audiences through website streaming, podcast platforms, and partner-hosted live screenings.
Is Silk Road Rising a public or private company?
Silk Road Rising is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Silk Road Rising founded?
Silk Road Rising was founded in 2002. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Silk Road Rising based?
Silk Road Rising is headquartered in Illinois City, United States, in the North America region.
How does Silk Road Rising make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Donations and Contributions are the primary driver. The others are foundation and Corporate Grants, government Arts Funding and stock Gifts.
Who are Silk Road Rising's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are East West Players, Ma-Yi Theater Company, Pangea World Theater, The Civilians and National Asian American Theatre Company (NAATCO). About Face Theatre is listed as an emerging player. Broad incumbents are Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Goodman Theatre and New York Theatre Workshop. Silk Road Ensemble is listed as a regional player.
Does Silk Road Rising have an API?
No public API is recorded for Silk Road Rising.
What industry is Silk Road Rising in?
Silk Road Rising's product category is Performing Arts. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAGABAI, Fringe & Experimental Performing Arts, with a secondary code of MPADABAG, Live-Action International/Co-Production & Service Production. Its NAICS code is 7111 and its SIC code is 7812.