Wonderlust Productions

What Wonderlust Productions does

Wonderlust Productions is a St. Paul, Minnesota-based non-profit arts organization founded in 2014 by Alan Berks and Leah Cooper that creates collaborative theater, audio, digital, and ritual-based projects from true community stories. The organization works directly with specific Minnesota communities—including veterans, adoptees, caregivers, formerly incarcerated individuals, civil servants, students, and local residents—using a proprietary "Listen-Wonder-Create-Repeat" methodology that pairs professional artists with community members from initial concept through final performance. Productions span live theater, QR-code audio plays (Hidden Herald), podcasts (Capitol Project Podcast), web series (Overachievers, Lessons in Isolation), graphic novels (In My Heart), and tabletop games (SCENARIO). The organization applies a Horizontal and Vertical Diversity Assessment to each project to ensure both demographic and power-hierarchy representation.

Wonderlust's underlying technology consists of a community-based theater production and participatory art-making methodology rather than a software platform. Notable technical components include the QR-code audio play infrastructure enabling location-specific self-guided experiences across St. Paul neighborhoods, the Ripple Effects Mapping participatory evaluation process (developed at the University of Minnesota) for measuring social impact, and an integrated content pipeline that adapts plays into multiple formats (e.g., the Capitol Play became a podcast; the Adoption Play became a graphic novel). The organization distributes content through live performances at partner venues (Mixed Blood Theatre, 825 Arts, Minnesota State Capitol), podcast platforms (Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Buzzsprout), and retail (Itasca Books for the graphic novel).

The business model is a hybrid of non-profit donation/grant funding and earned revenue. Revenue streams include individual and institutional donations (including Ecolab employee gift matching and grants from the Elmer L. and Eleanor J. Andersen Foundation and National Endowment for the Arts), sliding-scale and pay-what-you-can ticket sales, graphic novel retail, and a tiered Caregiver Play licensing program ($800–$18,000+) targeting healthcare, education, and nonprofit organizations. The go-to-market motion is community-led, building projects through story circles and participatory engagement with community organizations, then amplifying output through newsletters, social media, earned media coverage, and a volunteer pipeline. Operations are headquartered at 2300 Myrtle Ave, Suite 160, St. Paul, MN, with a core team of 1–10 employees supplemented by an extended ensemble of professional artists and community collaborators.

Name

Wonderlust Productions

Legal name

Wonderlust Productions

Website

https://wlproductions.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Wonderlust Productions is a St. Paul-based non-profit that creates collaborative theater, audio plays, podcasts, graphic novels, and web series from true stories told alongside Minnesota communities such as veterans, adoptees, caregivers, and formerly incarcerated individuals.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Performing Arts / Community Theater

NAICS

Performing Arts Companies (7111)

SIC

Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

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

akta.pro secondary industry

Media Arts & Film/Photography Nonprofits (BPAGAHAJ)

Keywords

• Community theater productions
• Collaborative storytelling
• Participatory arts
• Audio drama series
• Graphic novel publishing

Headquarters

HQ city

Saint Paul

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Ticket Sales & Admissions: Revenue generated from live theater performances, with sliding scale and pay-what-you-can pricing to ensure accessibility.
2. Individual & Institutional Donations: Donations from individual donors, family donors, and grants from organizations such as the Elmer L. and Eleanor J. Andersen Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, and general operating supporters. The company maintains a donor list and receives Ecolab employee gift matching.
3. Book Sales: Sales of the graphic novel 'In My Heart: The Adoption Story Project' through Itasca Books and direct channels, including tax-exempt purchases for qualifying organizations.
4. Caregiver Play Project Licensing & Performance Fees: The company offers the Caregiver Play in multiple formats (live scenes, video screening, virtual screening, full production) at price points ranging from $800 to $18,000+, generating performance and licensing revenue.
5. The Ned Rousmaniere Commissioning and Mentoring Fund: A named fund for memorial donations supporting opportunities for community members to express experiences through transformative art.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Wonderlust Productions creates collaborative theater, audio plays, podcasts, web series, graphic novels, and participatory rituals co-developed with specific Minnesota communities using its "Listen-Wonder-Create-Repeat" methodology. Productions are based on true stories gathered through story circles with veterans, adoptees, caregivers, formerly incarcerated individuals, civil servants, students, and other communities. The company also licenses its Caregiver Play to organizations and offers training labs for community engagement.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Hidden Herald Audio Play Series Audio play series accessible via QR codes on the streets of St. Paul, telling hidden stories of the city. Season 2 covers Downtown St. Paul and the Payne Phalen neighborhood.
• In My Heart: The Adoption Story Project (Graphic Novel) Graphic novel adapted from the 2016 play, featuring illustrated story of adoption exploring family, identity, and the adoption experience through true stories from adoptees, adoptive parents, birth parents, and social workers.
• Our House: The Capitol Project Podcast Podcast revival of the 2018 play about Minnesota state government, combining audio drama with honest conversations with Capitol insiders about how power and change really work.
• Thank You for Holding: The Caregiver Play Play based on true stories of caregivers, available in multiple formats (live scenes, video screening, virtual screening, full production) at tiered price points from $800 to $18,000+, offered to healthcare facilities, schools, conferences, support groups, and book clubs.
• Overachievers Web Series Six-episode web series exploring the complexity behind the compulsion to achieve excessively, featuring real overachievers sharing their stories and words.
• Lessons in Isolation Web Series Video series where cast members from the incarceration community share lessons learned about living in isolation.
• SCENARIO: The Futurism Game Simple world-building/role-playing game designed for 3+ people of any age, created to spark imagination and storytelling about the future.
• The Veterans Play Project Original play performed at Fort Snelling, inspired by stories from over 100 Minnesota military veterans, telling the story of veterans and civilians in a fictional Midwest town.
• The Labyrinth and The Minotaur: The Incarceration Play Project Epic play reimagining the ancient myth of Theseus through stories of people connected by the Minnesota incarceration system, performed at Mixed Blood Theater.
• Lost & Found: A Participatory Ritual and Performance Participatory ritual and performance for ambiguous loss held on Raspberry Island, exploring grief and resilience through stories and live performance.
• The Values Play Project Play development about people in Minnesota affected by culture wars, exploring personal experiences leading to values held dearest, in partnership with Braver Angels of Minnesota and Minnesota Council of Churches.
• Look Again: The Normandale Play Project Musical theater production at Normandale Community College based on true stories from the campus community, told as an epic adventure with music and movement.
• The Capitol Project Audio Play Audio version of the 2018 play Our House, featuring true stories from Minnesota state workers and government advocates.
• Training Labs for Organizations Custom training programs where professional actors work with organizational teams using their own stories to build empathy, facilitate conversations, inspire creativity, and empower individuals.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 2,000 people connected, engaged, and participated during the pandemic period (2020–2022) through innovative programming.
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

22 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Minnesota Humanities CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvided recording space, advice, and promotional support for the Capitol Project Podcast. Minnesota Humanities Center is a key community partner that has collaborated across multiple Wonderlust productions, including the Veterans Play Project and Incarceration Play Project discussions.
• In Progress StudioscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvided recording space for the Capitol Project Podcast, supporting the audio production of the play adaptation.
• Eastside Freedom LibrarycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvided recording space for the Capitol Project Podcast, enabling community access to the audio production.
• Mixed Blood TheatrecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProducing partner for the Veterans Play Project (2013) and presenting partner for The Labyrinth and the Minotaur: The Incarceration Play Project (2022). Provides professional theater venue and production infrastructure.
• Minnesota Department of Veteran AffairsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partner for the Veterans Play Project, supporting outreach and engagement with Minnesota's veteran community.
• Minnesota National GuardminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partner for the Veterans Play Project, helping connect with active and national guard members for story gathering and performance.
• Veterans for PeaceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partner for the Veterans Play Project, providing outreach connections to the veteran community.
• Beyond the Yellow RibbonminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partner for the Veterans Play Project, supporting veteran community engagement for the production.
• University of Minnesota Student Veterans AssociationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partner for the Veterans Play Project, providing student veteran connections for the production.
• Veterans in the ArtsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partner for the Veterans Play Project, supporting veteran artistic engagement.
• Women Veterans InitiativeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partner for the Veterans Play Project, providing connections to women veterans for the production.
• The Theater of Public PolicyminorGTM or Marketing PartnerHelped spread the word about the Capitol Project Podcast to listeners through their network.
• MinnPostminorGTM or Marketing PartnerHelped spread the word about the Capitol Project Podcast to their reader audience.
• Braver Angels of MinnesotacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization for the Values Play Project, working to bring people with opposing views together and help them develop skills to disagree better and find common ground.
• Minnesota Council of ChurchescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization for the Values Play Project, running programs like Respectful Conversations that bring Minnesotans together across differences through facilitated dialogue.
• Kendall's Ace Hardware (840 Payne Avenue)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner location for Hidden Herald Season 2, distributing paper maps for the audio play scavenger hunt in the Payne Phalen neighborhood.
• Lost FoxminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner location for Hidden Herald Season 2, distributing paper maps near Union Depot/Lowertown area.
• Gallery of Wood Art (Landmark Center)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner location for Hidden Herald Season 2 paper map distribution, located at the Landmark Center in downtown St. Paul.
• Saint Paul BrewingminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner location for Hidden Herald Season 2 paper map distribution.
• MetroNOME BreweryminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner location for Hidden Herald Season 2 paper map distribution in downtown St. Paul.
• 825 ArtscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partner venue for the Caregiver Play Project (Thank You for Holding), performed in fall 2024.
• Coming Home Collaborative at Our Saviour's Lutheran ChurchminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partner for the Veterans Play Project, providing support and connections to returning veterans.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• The Civilians: NYC-based theater company that creates original work from real-life interviews with communities around civic and social topics — a near-identical investigative-community-theater model and the closest peer in artistic intent.
• Sojourn Theatre: Portland-based company specializing in community-based theater created from community stories, with a similar process-driven, community-engaged approach. Comparable in scale and methodology.
• Mixed Blood Theatre: Minneapolis-based producing partner that has hosted Wonderlust's Veterans Play and Incarceration Play productions. Operates as a regional/community-engaged theater with similar commitments to diverse casting and access-first programming — the most direct local peer in scale and mission.
• Cornerstone Theater Company: LA-based community-engaged theater with a nationally recognized participatory methodology that commissions theater built from non-actor community stories. Board/staff overlap confirmed (Becky Dale collaborator). The clearest methodological peer to Wonderlust's Listen-Wonder-Create-Repeat framework.
• Pillsbury House + Theatre: Minneapolis-based nonprofit combining social services with community-based theater. Co-founder Alan Berks was previously Communications Director here. Comparable mission, scale, and integrated community-arts model.
• Ten Thousand Things Theater: Minneapolis theater company producing accessible, multiformat work for audiences that have limited access to traditional theater — closely aligned with Wonderlust's accessibility-first pricing and diverse community programming.

Regional players

• Park Square Theatre: St. Paul regional theater that has hosted Wonderlust-adjacent productions (Wonderlust team has worked there). Larger institutional theater with shared community programming, though less participatory in methodology.
• Interact Center for the Visual and Performing Arts: Minneapolis-based performing arts company featuring artists with disabilities, sharing Wonderlust's inclusive casting and access orientation. A Twin Cities peer with overlapping community impact focus.

Broad incumbents

• Penumbra Theatre: St. Paul-based, nationally recognized African American performing arts company with deep community engagement roots. Larger and more established than Wonderlust, but shares the Twin Cities community-theater ecosystem and overlapping methodologies.

Others

• Nautilus Music-Theater: Minneapolis-based music-theater company where board/collaborator Becky Dale has worked. Adjacent Twin Cities peer in new-music-theater development with comparable scale and nonprofit structure.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/wonderlustprod
• Facebookfacebook.com/WonderlustProductions
• Instagraminstagram.com/wonderlustprod

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 Wonderlust Productions