Chicago Latino Theater Alliance

What Chicago Latino Theater Alliance does

Chicago Latino Theater Alliance (CLATA) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) arts organization founded in 2016 in Chicago, Illinois, to develop and promote Latino/Latine theater in the city. It was formed as a coalition of three of Chicago's most prominent Latino cultural institutions — the International Latino Cultural Center of Chicago, the National Museum of Mexican Art, and the Puerto Rican Arts Alliance — together with arts executive Myrna Salazar, with founding financial support from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE), and Allstate Insurance Company. The organization is headquartered at 78 E Washington St, Ste 100, Chicago, IL 60602 and operates as a self-governed 501(c)(3) under board oversight, with Rosemary Bombela-Tobias as Board Chair and Carlos Tortolero (Co-Founder, President Emeritus of the National Museum of Mexican Art) as Board Vice-Chair.

CLATA's core product is a portfolio of three signature annual programs: Destinos: Chicago International Latino Theater Festival (a citywide festival showcasing Chicago-based Latine artists alongside top Latine artists from the U.S. and Latin America), Inicios: Chicago Latine Playwright Festival (dedicated to elevating Chicagoland Latine playwrights), and Latine Theatre Artist Week (a weeklong professional and artistic development series). It also produces ancillary fundraising events such as Chicas de Hoy, a drag/music nostalgia show ticketed via Eventbrite (~$30–$35 per ticket). Programming is delivered through cultural-institution partnerships at venues including the National Museum of Mexican Art, Harris Theater, and the Pritzker Pavilion at Millennium Park, and is promoted through Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Choose Chicago, and the League of Chicago Theatres.

The business model is a non-profit operating model: revenue is generated from a diversified stack of foundation grants (MacArthur, Joyce, Shubert, Driehaus, Paul M. Angell, Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley, Arts Work Fund, Excellerator), government cultural-affairs funding (DCASE, Illinois Arts Council, Chicago Cultural Treasures), corporate sponsorships (Allstate, ComEd, Wintrust, Copa Airlines), pro bono services (Lawyers for the Creative Arts), and ticketed event income. CLATA serves two primary customer segments: emerging and established Latino/Latine theater artists, playwrights, directors, and actors in Chicago (the talent pipeline), and Chicago's Latino theater-going audiences in the broader Chicago DMA (1.9M Latinos, $65B+ disposable income), with a secondary commercial audience of corporate sponsors seeking Latino-market cultural engagement. No underlying technology platform, proprietary software, or AI/ML capability is disclosed.

Name

Chicago Latino Theater Alliance

Legal name

Chicago Latino Theater Alliance

Website

https://clata.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Chicago Latino Theater Alliance (CLATA) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit founded in 2016 that operates Destinos, Inicios, and Latine Theatre Artist Week to develop and showcase Latino theater artists, playwrights, and audiences across the Chicago metropolitan area.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cultural Arts Programming

NAICS

Promoters of Performing Arts, Sports, and Similar Events without Facilities (711320), Performing Arts Companies (7111)

SIC

Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAGAHAB

Performing Arts Organizations (Theater, Dance, Opera, Music)

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Arts, Culture & Heritage Nonprofits

SECONDARYTHAHABAN

Arts, Culture, Entertainment & Fan Conventions Organizers

Travel & Hospitality/MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Exhibitions)/Exhibition & Trade Show Organizers

Keywords

• Latino theater festivals
• Cultural arts programming
• Playwright development
• Arts nonprofit
• Community theater events

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, Others

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Chicago Latino Theater Alliance (CLATA) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization that produces and presents Latino theater programming in Chicago, including three signature programs: Destinos (annual citywide international Latino theater festival), Inicios (annual Latine playwright festival), and Latine Theatre Artist Week (professional development week). It also stages fundraiser events such as Chicas de Hoy to support year-round programming for Latino playwrights, actors, directors, and theater professionals.

Product overview

Chicago Latino Theater Alliance (CLATA) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) arts organization that operates three signature programs: Destinos (Chicago International Latino Theater Festival), Inicios (Chicago Latine Playwright Festival), and Latine Theatre Artist Week. These programs collectively support and promote Latino theater artists, playwrights, and theater professionals in Chicago through festivals, events, and professional development opportunities. The organization also produces events like Chicas de Hoy as fundraisers to support its year-round programming.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Destinos: Chicago International Latino Theater Festival: Annual citywide festival showcasing Chicago's Latine theater artists and companies alongside top Latine artists from the U.S. and Latin America.
• Inicios: Chicago Latine Playwright Festival
• Latine Theatre Artist Week

Products and services

• Destinos: Chicago International Latino Theater Festival An annual, citywide festival showcasing Chicago's Latine theater artists and companies alongside top Latine artists from the U.S. and Latin America, targeted at Latino theater audiences and cultural enthusiasts in the Chicago metropolitan area.
• Inicios: Chicago Latine Playwright Festival An annual festival dedicated to elevating and promoting Chicagoland area Latine playwrights, providing a showcase platform for emerging and established Latino playwright talent.
• Latine Theatre Artist Week A weeklong series of events providing professional and artistic development opportunities for Chicagoland Latine theater artists, including emerging and established playwrights, actors, directors, and theater professionals.
• Chicas de Hoy A fundraiser event featuring music, nostalgia, and drag performances with retro pop hits from the 1980s, 1990s and beyond, held at the National Museum of Mexican Art to support CLATA's year-round programming.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• National Latinx Theater InitiativecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic partner supporting Latino theater initiatives and programming
• Lawyers for the Creative ArtsminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerProvides legal services support for CLATA including copyrights and contracts
• League of Chicago TheatrescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTrade association of Chicago theaters; partner in supporting Latino theater ecosystem
• National Museum of Mexican ArtcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of three founding organizations; major venue partner for CLATA events including Chicas de Hoy and Destinos festival
• International Latino Cultural Center of ChicagocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of three founding organizations of CLATA in 2016; co-developer of Destinos festival and Latino theater programming
• Puerto Rican Arts AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of three founding organizations of CLATA in 2016; partner in supporting Puerto Rican and broader Latino theater community
• Consulado General de Argentina en ChicagominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerArgentine consulate providing consular support and cultural promotion for CLATA events

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• INTAR Theatre: NYC-based Latino theater company and one of the oldest Latino theater organizations in the U.S. Comparable in mission (developing Latino playwrights and presenting Latino productions) and in nonprofit structure, though more established.
• Repertorio Español: NYC-based nonprofit Latino theater company producing Spanish-language plays and developing Latino playwrights and actors. Closest analog in structure: nonprofit, dedicated Latino theater programming, parallel artist-development + festival/presentation model.
• Teatro Vista: Chicago-based Latino theater company producing original works and developing Latino artists. Direct in-market peer with overlapping programming focus and shared audience base in the Chicago DMA.
• GALA Hispanic Theatre: Washington, D.C.-based Latino theater company producing Spanish-language and bilingual works. Direct peer in mission and offering - dedicated Latino theater production and artist development - operating in a different regional market.
• National Latinx Theater Initiative: National advocacy and funding organization for Latinx theater. Directly comparable as a peer and existing strategic partner of CLATA, focused on the same artist development and resource mobilization mission across the U.S. Latino theater ecosystem.
• International Latino Cultural Center of Chicago: One of CLATA's three founding organizations and a peer in Chicago's Latino cultural ecosystem. Closely related through shared leadership and programming (co-developer of Destinos), but operates as a broader cultural presenter rather than a theater-specific body.

Emerging players

• National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures (NALAC): National advocacy and capacity-building organization for Latino arts and culture. Comparable as a peer in the broader Latino cultural ecosystem, but operates as an umbrella/intermediary rather than a direct theater producer like CLATA.

Broad incumbents

• Goodman Theatre: Major Chicago theater institution; CLATA Board Member Roche Schulfer is Goodman's former CEO. Broad incumbent comparable as a major Chicago theater player, but with substantially larger budget and a general (not Latino-specific) programming mandate.
• Steppenwolf Theatre Company: Tony Award-winning Chicago theater institution. Broad incumbent comparable as a leading Chicago theater producer with overlapping artist pool and audience base, though its programming is not Latino-focused.

Regional players

• Cara Mía Theatre: Dallas-based Latino theater company producing bilingual and culturally relevant works. Comparable in mission and nonprofit structure but operates in a different geography (Texas) than CLATA's Chicago focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/LatinoTheater
• Facebookfacebook.com/latinotheater
• Instagraminstagram.com/latinotheater
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/latinotheater

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 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 Chicago Latino Theater Alliance