Dad's Garage Theatre Company

What Dad's Garage Theatre Company does

Dad's Garage Theatre Company is a nonprofit comedy and improv theatre organization founded in 1995 and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, operating from a 205-seat venue at 569 Ezzard St. The company produces and presents live scripted and improvisational comedy performances, including mainstage shows, long-running franchise titles (e.g., SCANDAL!), and touring/limited-run productions (e.g., Gutenberg! The Musical!), while also delivering educational programming through improv classes, a multi-level conservatory, summer camps, and corporate workshops.

The core operating assets are a purpose-built improv theatre with ancillary bar/concessions operations, a curated training curriculum, and an ensemble/performer pipeline that feeds both the company's productions and external teaching engagements. Programming is structured around recurring weekly improv jams, ticketed public shows, structured curricula across beginner-to-conservatory tracks, summer youth camps, and customized private/corporate events. Revenue mechanics span consumer ticket sales (general admission pricing observed at $35), tuition from classes (eight-week course observed at $275) and conservatory enrollment (observed at $1,200), summer camp fees, private corporate shows and workshops (observed starting at $1,000+), venue rental, on-site bar/concessions, and contributed income from donations and sponsorships.

The customer base is bifurcated: a high-volume long-tail consumer segment purchasing individual tickets and class enrollments, and a corporate/institutional segment for private events and workshops that includes recognizable enterprise and institutional logos (e.g., Coca-Cola, Delta, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Georgia Tech, CDC Foundation, MARTA, Atlanta BeltLine, Carter Center). Distribution is primarily Atlanta-metro and onsite at the company-owned venue, with outreach through community partnerships (e.g., Primrose Schools, Georgia State University Gerontology Institute, American Institute for Stuttering, Habitat for Humanity, WarnerMedia) that both deepen brand presence and seed new programming verticals.

Name

Dad's Garage Theatre Company

Legal name

Dad's Garage, Inc.

Website

https://dadsgarage.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Dad's Garage Theatre Company is a nonprofit improv and comedy theatre in Atlanta, Georgia, founded in 1995, operating a 205-seat venue that delivers live performances, improv classes, a conservatory, youth summer camps, and corporate workshops to both consumer audiences and enterprise clients.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Live Improvisational Comedy Theatre

NAICS

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

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Improvisational Theatre (MPAGABAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Performing Arts Camps (Theater, Musical Theater, Dance) (EDAMALAI)

Keywords

• Improvisational comedy theatre
• Live performance venue
• Comedy education classes
• Corporate team building workshops
• Comedy summer camps

Headquarters

HQ city

Atlanta

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Revenue model

1. Ticket Sales: Revenue from individual show tickets and season subscriptions/packages. Ticket prices are approximately $35 for general admission shows. Package deals offer 20% discount across multiple shows.
2. Classes and Workshops: Adult improv classes (8-week sessions at $275), master classes (e.g., 4-week Do Improv Good at $275), conservatory program ($1,200), and specialty workshops (e.g., Improv for Commercial Auditions, TJ and Dave workshop). Students receive free tickets to most shows.
3. Summer Camps: Week-long kids' and teen camps running May through July, with aftercare add-on options at $25/day.
4. Corporate Events and Venue Rental: Private shows, team-building workshops, and venue rentals for corporate events. Workshops can accommodate 8–150 people. Pricing begins at $1,000 for private shows. The theatre seats up to 205 for private events, with bar, lobby, and patio available as add-ons.
5. Venue Rental: Venue rental for external events (weddings, office parties, film shoots) including lobby, patio, parking lot, and upstairs theatre. Flexible booking Sunday–Wednesday with full venue packages available.
6. Bar and Concessions: On-site bar and concessions revenue including beer, wine, cocktails, mocktails, and snacks. Alcohol sales include draft beers, canned beers, wine by glass/bottle, and spirits. THC seltzers also available.
7. Donations and Sponsorship: Donations from patrons, diversity and inclusion scholarship funding, and corporate sponsorships. Ticket donations ($35 value, two general admission seats) are offered for nonprofit silent auctions.
8. Donated Ticket Program: Dad's Garage donates pairs of general admission seats to nonprofit organizations for their silent auctions, valued at $35 per pair.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Dad's Garage Theatre Company is a nonprofit improv and comedy theatre in Atlanta, Georgia that produces live scripted and improvised comedy performances, trains amateur and professional improvisers through multi-level classes and a conservatory program, delivers corporate team-building workshops, runs youth summer camps, and rents out its 205-seat theatre and bar for private events. The company operates as a community-focused arts organization that combines ticketed entertainment with hands-on comedy education.

Product overview

Dad's Garage Theatre Company operates as a comedy improv theatre offering a diverse portfolio of live performance and educational products. Core offerings include live improv and comedy shows (Gutenberg! The Musical!, SCANDAL! The Bare, The Tight Acquaintances, TheatreSports, and specialty performances like TJ and Dave, Messing & Lehr), alongside an educational program with adult improv classes (Levels 1-5), an audition-only Conservatory training program, corporate team-building workshops, and summer camps for kids and teens. The company also offers venue rentals and private show packages. Community programs include youth scholarships, diversity initiatives, and nonprofit partnerships. The theatre is located in Atlanta, GA with a 205-seat main stage, lobby, patio, and bar services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Tight Acquaintances: An improv comedy tribute to classic tabletop pen-and-paper RPGs featuring ensemble performers and a Dungeon Master, with a live podcast version called 'The Tight Acquaintances: The Podcast: The Show'
• SCANDAL! The Bare
• Dad's Garage Conservatory
• DG In Conline

Products and services

• Live Improv and Comedy Shows

Quantifiable outcome

• 100% of corporate workshop clients would book Dad's Garage again (based on post-workshop surveys)

Named customers17 records

Segments6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• Primrose SchoolsminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 March 2026Dad's Garage collaborated with Primrose Schools to create 'The Primrose Friends Live,' an interactive theatrical show for children ages 2–5. The show ran Saturdays from March 14 through April 18 at Dad's Garage in the greater metro Atlanta area, supporting children's social-emotional development through storytelling, music, and imaginative play. This partnership expanded the Primrose Friends brand beyond the classroom and YouTube channel, aligning with Primrose's Balanced Learning educational approach.
• WarnerMediaminorOthersWarnerMedia provides funding support for Dad's Garage's Diversity and Inclusivity Scholarship program, enabling free improv classes for students who demonstrate diversity and inclusion values regardless of race, gender identity, sexuality, nationality, or class.
• Improving through Improv (ITI)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFrom 2024 to 2025, Dad's Garage served as a host location for ITI's dementia-based program 'Improving Care through Improv.' The partnership supported people who stutter and people with anxiety, with the primary program dedicated to improving care experiences for persons living with dementia and their care partners through improvisation techniques.
• Georgia State University Gerontology InstituteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDad's Garage partnered with GSU's Gerontology Institute to develop and test novel education programs designed to improve care experiences for persons living with dementia and their care partners. The project 'Improving Care through Improv: Promoting Mastery in the Moment' was led by Dr. Candace L. Kemp in collaboration with Dad's Garage ensemble member Amanda Lee Williams, funded through the Emory Roybal Center for Dementia Caregiving Mastery.
• Georgia GearminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDad's Garage partnered with Georgia Gear to tackle challenges of providing superior healthcare for people living with dementia, combining improvisation techniques and research from Emory University and Georgia State University to create new care approaches.
• CDC FoundationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDad's Garage received a grant from the CDC Foundation to create an improv show and sketch video to increase vaccine confidence in Georgia communities. Performances were staged all over the state with vaccines offered at each event.
• American Institute for StutteringminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIn 2022, Dad's Garage offered a successful online improv class with the American Institute for Stuttering. In 2023, they hosted a one-day in-person workshop called 'Go With the Flow' designed specifically for people who stutter, created and taught by Dad's Garage ensemble member Amanda Lee Williams and Carl Herder of AIS.
• Bert's Big AdventureminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDad's Garage partnered with Bert's Big Adventure (nonprofit arm of The Bert Show) for a massive fundraiser supporting the organization's mission to bring magic and joy to children with chronic and terminal illnesses and their families in 2025.
• Habitat for Humanity (Atlanta)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerDad's Garage partnered with Atlanta Habitat for Humanity for the 'Stand Up for Pride' event, a fundraiser supporting the 2nd Annual Pride Build to construct homes for LGBTQIA+ families in the community.
• Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning DistrictminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDad's Garage partnered with the Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District to highlight 'Imagine a Day Without Water,' a national day of action for greater water investment.
• OCA AtlantaminorOthersListed sponsor of Dad's Garage, receiving recognition on the sponsors page.
• Georgia Arts Council / Fulton County Board of CommissionersminorOthersFunding provided by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners. Program supported by the City of Atlanta Mayor's Office of Cultural Affairs.
• Sweetwater Brewing CompanyminorOthersListed sponsor of Dad's Garage with on-site bar presence through their craft beer offerings.
• Concord TheatricalsminorOthersGutenberg! The Musical! is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals, which holds the licensing rights for the production.
• Atlanta Arts Organizations (7 Stages Theatre, Synchronicity Theatre, Aurora Theatre, Alliance Theatre, Horizon Theatre, Atlanta Ballet, The Atlanta Opera, Center for Puppetry Arts, Out Front Theatre)minorOthersListed collaborative partners in the Atlanta theatre and arts community, suggesting ongoing peer relationships and cross-promotional activities within the local arts ecosystem.
• Concord TheatricalsminorOthersLicensing arrangement for theatrical productions including Gutenberg! The Musical!

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Alliance Theatre: Atlanta's largest regional theater, producing a mix of musicals, plays, and education programs. A regional peer competing for the same Atlanta ticket buyers, corporate sponsorships, and arts funding.
• Synchronicity Theatre: Atlanta-based theater company producing original works and a range of performance and education programs. A regional peer competing for Atlanta audiences, donors, and community partnerships.
• Center for Puppetry Arts: Atlanta-based performing arts institution offering family-oriented shows, education programs, and venue rentals. Comparable as a regional Atlanta arts organization with family programming, classes, and event-space revenue.
• Aurora Theatre: Lawrenceville, GA-based professional theater offering a season of plays and musicals plus education programming. Comparable as a Georgia-based theater competing for local audiences, donors, and class registrations.

Direct peers

• The Annoyance Theatre: Chicago-based improv and alternative comedy theater producing original long-form work, classes, and ensemble shows. A peer in scale and operational model, with a similar mix of original formats and training.
• Upright Citizens Brigade (UCB): Improv and sketch comedy theater with training centers in NYC and LA, offering multi-level classes and ensemble shows. Directly comparable as an improv-first organization that also monetizes corporate training and education.
• iO Theater (ImprovOlympic): Long-form and short-form improv theater in Chicago with classes, conservatory-style training, and signature competitive formats. Most directly comparable to Dad's Garage as a purpose-built improv venue with an education pipeline.
• The Groundlings: LA-based improv and sketch comedy theater with a famous training program and Sunday Company ensemble. Closely aligned with Dad's Garage on the improv-plus-classes business model and ensemble-driven product.

Broad incumbents

• Big Apple Circus: Established live-performance organization with touring shows, family programming, and corporate/school partnerships. Comparable in the live-performance-for-families-and-corporate-clients category, with a broader touring footprint.
• The Second City: Chicago-based comedy institution producing improv, sketch, and scripted shows, plus a well-known training center. A larger, more established incumbent operating in the same improv-and-comedy category with corporate and education programs.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/c/DadsGarageTV
• Facebookfacebook.com/DadsGarageTheatre
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dadsgarage
• Instagraminstagram.com/dadsgarageatl
• Xx.com/dads_garage

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Dad's Garage Theatre Company