What Palm Beach Dramaworks does

Palm Beach Dramaworks (PBD) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) professional live theatre founded in 2000/2001 and headquartered at 201 Clematis Street, West Palm Beach, Florida, in the Don & Ann Brown Theatre. It produces 6-8 mainstage productions per season, mixing classics, contemporary plays, and musicals, with notable talent including Debra Jo Rupp and Ray Anthony Thomas in the 2026 Driving Miss Daisy. The organization's product platform extends well beyond mainstage performance: education programs include theAcademy@pbd (professional teen training), Young Playwrights Contests, the One Humanity Tour (reaching 23,000+ Palm Beach County students), the 'Lit' Theatre Project, and Field Trips; community engagement spans The Legacy Project with Compass Community Center, OutStage@pbd (LGBTQ audience programming), and Dramawise adult education; and new-play development operates via the annual Perlberg Festival of New Plays, named for executive producers Diane and Mark Perlberg. The Perlberg Festival is scheduled for March 5-7, 2027.

PBD operates a diversified nonprofit revenue model combining ticket sales (less than half of annual expenses), an Annual Fund, the tiered VIPbd membership ($100-$5,000), the Sustainer Society (five-year pledges from $5,000), the Take a Seat seat-naming campaign ($5,000/five years), Producer partnerships ($10,000-$25,000 per production), an Annual Gala (tickets $750, dinner sponsorships up to $50,000), and foundation grants from funders including Hearst Foundations, Kids' Dreams, and the Virginia & Harvey Kimmel Family Fund. Pricing for mainstage tickets ranges $75-$115; Academy performances run $35 adults/$15 students; OutStage evenings are $115 inclusive of reception. Distribution is direct: box office (web, phone, walk-up), season subscriptions, and group sales, all from a single primary venue.

The organization is governed by a board chaired by Carlton Moody (appointed November 2022), with Rudina Toro appointed Executive Director on September 9, 2025 and Managing Director Sue Ellen Beryl leading fundraising. PBD has 11-50 employees, no parent company, no institutional investment, and co-produces with Asolo Repertory Theatre (Provenance, 2026) and Riverside Theatre (The Light in the Piazza, 2027), signaling shared-risk programming expansion.

Name

Palm Beach Dramaworks

Legal name

Palm Beach Dramaworks

Website

https://palmbeachdramaworks.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Palm Beach Dramaworks is a 501(c)(3) professional live theatre in West Palm Beach, Florida, producing 6-8 mainstage productions per season, with an adjacent education and community engagement platform serving patrons, students, and LGBTQ audiences across Palm Beach County.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Live Theatre / Performing Arts

NAICS

Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters (711110), Performing Arts Companies (7111), Theater Companies and Dinner Theaters (71111), Other Performing Arts Companies (711190)

akta.pro primary industry

Regional & Repertory Theatre Companies (MPAGABAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Classical & Contemporary Theatre (Plays/Drama) (MPAGABAH), Performing Arts Centers & Presenters (Programming/Booking) (MPAGABAM), Musical Theatre (Non-Broadway/Fringe) (MPAGABAG)

Keywords

• Professional theatre productions
• Live stage performances
• Performing arts education
• New play development
• Arts community engagement

Headquarters

HQ city

West Palm Beach

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, Others

Revenue model

1. Ticket Sales: Primary revenue stream from mainstage productions, special engagements, and academy performances. Revenue generated through subscriptions, single tickets, and group sales for theatre productions.
2. Annual Fund Donations: Donations from individuals supporting the theatre's annual operations, recognized in playbill and on website.
3. VIPbd Membership: Donor membership program with tiered benefits ranging from $100 to $5,000, providing recognition and perks like waived handling fees, ticket concierge service, and complimentary tickets.
4. Producer Partnerships: Corporate and individual sponsorships for productions at Associate Producer ($10,000), Producer ($15,000), and Executive Producer ($25,000) levels, including recognition and experiential benefits.
5. Sustainer Society: Five-year pledge program with minimum $5,000 commitment ($1,000/year), offering playbill recognition and lobby wall acknowledgment for higher tiers.
6. Annual Gala: Special fundraising event with ticket sales at $750 per person, plus sponsorship opportunities ranging from $7,500 table sponsorships to $50,000 dinner sponsorships.
7. Take a Seat Campaign: Seat naming opportunity for $5,000 over five years, with engraved plaque and donor recognition.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Palm Beach Dramaworks produces and presents professional live theatre productions at its Don & Ann Brown Theatre in West Palm Beach, featuring classic and contemporary plays and musicals with professional actors. The core offering is the mainstage season (typically 6–8 productions annually from October through June), augmented by theAcademy@pbd training for teen performers, the Perlberg Festival of New Plays, the One Humanity Tour for schools, and community programs such as Legacy Project and OutStage@pbd.

Product overview

Palm Beach Dramaworks is a professional live theatre company offering a core product of mainstage theatrical productions at its West Palm Beach venue. The organization operates a platform-plus-modules model where the mainstage productions serve as the core offering, supplemented by education programs (theAcademy@pbd for teen training, Young Playwrights Contests, Field Trips, One Humanity Tour, The 'Lit' Theatre Project), community engagement initiatives (The Legacy Project, OutStage@pbd, Dramawise), and new play development (Perlberg Festival of New Plays). The organization also offers membership and donor programs (VIPbd, Sustainer Society, Become a Producer, Take a Seat, Annual Gala) as revenue-generating modules supporting theatre operations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• theAcademy@pbd: Professional-level training program for teen actors and stage managers offering summer programs and performances.
• OutStage@pbd
• Dramawise

Products and services

• Mainstage Productions Professional live theatre productions presented at the Don & Ann Brown Theatre in West Palm Beach, featuring classic and contemporary plays and musicals performed by professional actors for individual ticket buyers, season subscribers, and group patrons.
• theAcademy@pbd Professional-level training program for teen actors and stage managers offering summer productions and intensive workshops, including fully staged Academy performances priced at $35 adults and $15 for students.
• Young Playwrights Contest Annual playwriting contests for Palm Beach County middle school (1-Minute Play Contest, up to 40 finalists) and high school (10-Minute Play Contest, up to 10 winners) students, with winners receiving $250 cash prizes and professional production opportunities.
• Perlberg Festival of New Plays Annual new play development festival featuring staged readings of five developing plays with post-performance audience feedback, serving as the organization's flagship new play development program and held the first week of March each year.
• One Humanity Tour Free professional touring program bringing original productions on social issues (human trafficking, substance abuse, responsible decision-making) to middle and high school students across Palm Beach County, with the Swagger play alone reaching over 23,000 students.
• The Legacy Project Intergenerational digital storytelling program in partnership with Compass Community Center that pairs LGBTQ youth with mature community members to record and preserve personal histories.
• OutStage@pbd LGBTQ-focused special evenings featuring pre-show receptions, mainstage productions, and post-show discussions, engaging the LGBTQ community and allies with each mainstage production.
• Dramawise Adult educational series exploring each production's key ideas, characters, themes, social relevance, and playwright perspectives prior to performances, used as a community/developer relations channel.
• Field Trips Program Free school-day performances for visiting school classes with post-show talkbacks, teacher resource guides, and transportation assistance for Title 1 schools through the Stagecoach Fund.
• The 'Lit' Theatre Project Essay competition for Title 1 high school students centered on selected plays, with winners attending special performances; sponsored by Kids' Dreams and the Virginia & Harvey Kimmel Family Fund.

Quantifiable outcome

• 23,000+ students reached through Swagger touring play on responsible decision-making
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Asolo Repertory TheatrecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-production partner for Provenance (2026), a play by Jennifer Maisel about a portrait's journey through Nazi theft. This collaboration represents a significant production partnership between two regional theatres.
• Riverside TheatrecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-production partner for The Light in the Piazza (2027), the Tony Award-winning musical by Adam Guettel and Craig Lucas.
• Compass Community CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAnnual collaboration on The Legacy Project, an intergenerational digital storytelling initiative pairing LGBTQ youth with mature community members to preserve personal histories.
• School District of Palm Beach CountycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner for the One Humanity Tour, providing free professional touring productions to middle and high school students including Swagger, Live to Tell, and Hungry Ghosts.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Regional players

• Maltz Jupiter Theatre: A professional regional theatre in Jupiter, FL, producing mainstage plays and musicals with significant education and community engagement programming. Comparable to PBD in size, mission, Florida geography, and nonprofit operating model, though located in the same broader market.
• Hippodrome State Theatre: A professional regional theatre in Gainesville, FL, combining mainstage productions with robust education and community programs. Comparable to PBD in Florida regional positioning, educational mission, and LORT-affiliated operations.

Direct peers

• Asolo Repertory Theatre: An LORT-class regional theatre in Sarasota, FL, producing a season of plays and musicals and active in new play development. A direct peer and existing co-production partner with PBD on Provenance (2026); shares similar scale, programming model, and producer-tier sponsorship structures.
• Riverside Theatre: A regional theatre in Vero Beach, FL, producing a mix of plays, musicals, and cabaret with education programs. An existing co-production partner on The Light in the Piazza (2027) and directly comparable in regional theatre scale, programming mix, and Florida market positioning.
• Florida Studio Theatre: A major regional theatre in Sarasota, FL, known for a rotating repertory model, large subscriber base, and extensive education programming. Comparable to PBD in producing model, education focus, and Florida regional theatre scale, with a larger overall operating footprint.
• Barrington Stage Company: A professional regional theatre in Pittsfield, MA, with a mainstage season plus a new play development program (similar in spirit to the Perlberg Festival). Comparable in scale, nonprofit funding model, and balance of classics with contemporary and new work.
• Westport Country Playhouse: A historic professional regional theatre in Connecticut producing a season of plays with active education and community programs. Comparable to PBD in nonprofit model, single-venue regional operation, and reliance on major donor/sustainer programs.

Broad incumbents

• Actors Theatre of Louisville: A long-established professional regional theatre known for Humana Festival of New American Plays. Comparable to PBD in nonprofit regional producing model, new play development orientation, and education programming, though larger in scale and national profile.
• Goodman Theatre: A large LORT regional theatre in Chicago with an extensive mainstage season, new play development, and deep education programming. Comparable in mission, programming mix (classics, musicals, new work), and donor-driven nonprofit model, though substantially larger than PBD.

Others

• Kravis Center for the Performing Arts: A major presenting venue in West Palm Beach that programs touring Broadway, concerts, and educational programming. Adjacent to PBD in the same local market: not a direct competitor in producing, but competes for the same discretionary entertainment and corporate sponsorship dollars from Palm Beach patrons.

Market position

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/PBDramaworks
• Facebookfacebook.com/PalmBeachDramaworks

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 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 Palm Beach Dramaworks