The Center at West Park

What The Center at West Park does

The Center at West Park is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit performing and community arts organization founded in 2016 and based on Manhattan's Upper West Side. It operates a multi-program slate that includes a Film Center, the Evolution Festival (now staged across multiple Manhattan partner venues), the Launchpad Reading Series, writing workshops, a puppetry festival, the Inclusion Concert, and Modern Silent Shorts, alongside 200-plus public events per year. The organization historically occupied the landmarked West Park Presbyterian Church — built circa 1890 and landmarked in 2010, featuring Tiffany stained-glass windows — and currently maintains a residency at St. Paul & St. Andrew UMC, providing operational continuity while the primary building situation evolves.

Its core operational technology is conventional and off-the-shelf: a public website, Eventbrite for ticketing and event registration, and Airtable for internal data management. There is no proprietary platform, no disclosed data flywheel, and no AI/ML tooling referenced. Programming is curated and human-led, with technology playing a back-office rather than differentiating role.

The revenue model combines four streams: rental income from subsidized and market-rate rehearsal and performance space, individual memberships priced at $75 per year, ticket sales across 200-plus events annually, and donations and grants — the latter including a partnership with the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) that enables rehearsal space at roughly $10 per hour. Audience and participant segments span working artists, Upper West Side residents, partner schools, and broader Manhattan festival-goers. Leadership is headed by Executive Director Debby Hirshman, with Marian M. Warden serving as Founder and Board President; the organization employs approximately 20 people.

Name

The Center at West Park

Legal name

The Center at West Park, Inc.

Website

https://centeratwestpark.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Center at West Park is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit arts organization on Manhattan's Upper West Side that runs 200-plus public events annually — film, literary, puppetry, and concert programming — serving working artists, local residents, and partner schools through memberships, ticket sales, space rentals, and grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Arts and Cultural Center

NAICS

Performing Arts Companies (7111), Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation (71)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900), Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Production (7812)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYMPAGABAM

Performing Arts Centers & Presenters (Programming/Booking)

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Live Entertainment & Events (Concerts, Theater, Festivals)/Theater, Broadway & Performing Arts

SECONDARYTHAHAAAI

Multi-Purpose Event Halls & Community Centers

Travel & Hospitality/MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Exhibitions)/Conference & Convention Venues (Convention Centers, Civic Centers)

SECONDARYTHAHAAAB

Conference Centers & Dedicated Meeting Venues

Travel & Hospitality/MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Exhibitions)/Conference & Convention Venues (Convention Centers, Civic Centers)

Keywords

• Community arts center
• Performance space rental
• Subsidized rehearsal space
• Arts programming festivals
• Cultural venue events

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

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. Space Rentals: Rental revenue from various spaces (Sanctuary, Chapel, Parlor, Board Room, Youth Room, Nursery) at St. Paul & St. Andrew UMC for performances, events, rehearsals, classes, and meetings.
2. Memberships: Annual membership program at $75 providing complimentary tickets to events, discounts, early notifications, and a CWP hat.
3. Ticket Sales: Revenue from ticketed events including Evolution Festival performances, film screenings, writing workshops, and special events.
4. Donations and Grants: Tax-deductible donations from individuals and institutional funding from organizations like New York State Council on the Arts to support programming and subsidized rehearsal space.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Center at West Park operates a nonprofit arts and cultural hub that provides affordable rental of performance, rehearsal, and meeting spaces and runs a year-round calendar of programs including film screenings, festivals, writing workshops, a puppetry residency, staged readings, and a youth inclusion concert. Offerings are delivered from its residency at St. Paul & St. Andrew United Methodist Church on Manhattan's Upper West Side and through partner venues during the Evolution Festival.

Product overview

The Center at West Park is a non-profit 501(c)(3) arts and cultural organization serving as a community hub on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The organization operates from its residency at St. Paul & St. Andrew's United Methodist Church, offering affordable rental spaces (including the Chapel, Board Room, Nursery, Youth Room, Parlor, and Sanctuary) for rehearsals, performances, and events. Its core programming includes the CWP Film Center, CWP Evolution Festival, CWP Launchpad Reading Series, Writing Workshops, and the Object Movement Puppetry Residency & Festival. The organization provides subsidized rehearsal space at $10/hour through New York State Council on the Arts funding, and hosts the annual Inclusion Concert celebrating performers with disabilities. Membership is available for $75/year with benefits including complimentary tickets to events.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CWP Film Center: A film series showcasing diverse films that span genres and perspectives, offering cultural enrichment and artistic exploration for independent filmmakers and film enthusiasts.
• CWP Evolution Festival
• CWP Launchpad Reading Series
• Object Movement Puppetry Festival (OMPF)
• CWP Inclusion Concert
• Modern Silent Shorts
• Subsidized Rehearsal Space Program

Products and services

• SPSA Chapel

Quantifiable outcome

• 200+ public events annually
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered major and minor.

• New York Landmarks ConservancymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization supporting preservation efforts for West Park Presbyterian Church landmark building. President Peg Breen has publicly supported CWP's community-driven preservation efforts.
• Historic Districts Council (HDC)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHDC strongly supports adaptive reuse of historic religious sites and views The Center at West Park as an example of how landmarks can become engines of creativity and community anchors.
• Council Member Gale BrewermajorGTM or Marketing PartnerNYC Council Member provides political support and advocacy for CWP's preservation efforts and programming, including involvement with the Inclusion Concert.
• Abrons Arts CenterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner venue for Evolution Festival 2026, hosting 'Wake & Forget-Me-Nots' performance at Experimental Theater.
• Manhattan Movement & Arts CenterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner venue for Evolution Festival 2026, hosting New York International Dance Festival performance.
• The Clemente Soto Vélez Cultural & Educational CenterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner venue for Evolution Festival 2026, hosting 'Instinct and Extinct' and 'Ofrenda' performances.
• Guild Hall at the Episcopal Actors' GuildminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner venue for Evolution Festival 2026, hosting 'Junie B. Jones Plans Her Funeral' performance.
• Urban StagesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner venue for Evolution Festival 2026, hosting 'COMMITTED? A Ritual for Robbie' performance.
• West End TheatreminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner venue for Evolution Festival 2026, hosting 'A Beautiful Place to Die' performance.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Abrons Arts Center: Lower East Side NYC performing arts center presenting experimental theater, dance, and community programming with subsidized artist space — a near-direct peer to CWP as both an Evolution Festival partner venue and a comparable nonprofit presenter model.
• The Flea Theater: TriBeCa experimental theater presenting new and developing works with a residency model for emerging artists — directly comparable as a small NYC nonprofit presenter focused on new-work development.
• HERE Arts Center: SoHo-based nonprofit performing arts center focused on multi-disciplinary new work development with subsidized artist residency and rehearsal space — comparable in mission, scale, and affordable-artist-space value proposition.
• Performance Space New York: East Village nonprofit commissioning and presenting experimental live performance — overlapping with CWP's experimental, multi-disciplinary performance programming.
• New York Live Arts: Chelsea-based presenter of contemporary dance and performance with affiliated space rentals and community programming — comparable in presenting dance, theater, and performance in a venue-rental-plus-programming model.
• Symphony Space: Upper West Side multi-arts presenter offering film screenings, literary events, and performing arts programming from a landmark venue — directly comparable geographic and programmatic profile to The Center at West Park.
• La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club: NYC nonprofit dedicated to developing new work and emerging artists through affordable space and risk-tolerant programming — a comparable nonprofit performing arts presenter serving a similar mission-driven, artist-development audience.
• New York Theatre Workshop: Off-Broadway nonprofit theater company producing new plays and developing emerging playwrights — comparable in new-work development mission and Launchpad Reading Series overlap.

Broad incumbents

• 92nd Street Y (92Y): Large, well-endowed Upper East Side cultural institution presenting music, dance, literary events, and talks — comparable programming categories but with substantially larger scale, endowment, and institutional footprint than CWP.

Others

• New York Landmarks Conservancy: Nonprofit preservation organization that publicly supports CWP's landmark preservation efforts — an enabling/adjacent partner organization rather than direct arts presenter competitor.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/center-at-west-park

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 The Center at West Park