Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in Mar 1989.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
85 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.
Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.
Something off? Claim to add context
Who runs it and what they're paid
41 people listed on the 990; $1.3M paid to officers and key staff.
Leslie Marcus’s $364K as Managing Director (to Jun 24) is at the 58th percentile of top reported officer pay among 749 $10–100M arts & culture nonprofits. Peer set: organizations in the same NTEE major field of work and revenue-size band, compared on each org’s own highest-paid officer/key-employee, from Form 990 Part VII / 990-PF Part VIII. Descriptive placement, not a verdict on whether the pay is appropriate.
Compensation history total reportable pay by year · 8 named individuals · Part VII
| Name | FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | FY2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leslie Marcus | $363,847 | $208,181 | $200,203 | $196,973 | $171,521 | $201,396 |
| Tim Sanford | — | — | — | $283,740 | $361,776 | $212,457 |
| Adam Greenfield | $172,159 | $176,028 | $173,843 | $158,069 | $129,214 | $103,636 |
| Carol Fishman | $156,222 | $157,411 | $155,892 | $152,662 | $127,341 | $153,608 |
| Benjamin Weisman | $149,828 | $145,762 | $138,921 | $126,802 | $115,376 | $117,697 |
| Linda Ibuzor | — | — | — | $63,594 | $145,524 | $137,966 |
| Tomi Tsunoda | — | — | — | $137,442 | — | — |
| Frederick Ertl | — | — | — | — | — | $122,765 |
Total reportable compensation (Form 990 Part VII column D / Schedule J column E) by filing year, matched by name within this organization. The Schedule J base / bonus / deferred breakdown is not parsed into this dataset.
See Playwrights Horizons INC executive salaries →Questions the 990 asks
The form asks each of these directly. These are the filed answers.
- Family or business ties among officersPt VI · Ln 2No
- Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aYes
Programs and updates
Develops and produces new plays and musicals, educating artists and audiences.
Questions for Playwrights Horizons INC
Your first name shows with your question. Playwrights Horizons INC answers here, for everyone.
Production and Play Development
This program consists of development, production and presentation of new works by U.S playwrights, composers and lyricists, including productions, workshops and readings. There were 6 full theatrical productions, and 20 readings.
Theater School
Operated in association with new york university's tisch school of the arts, this undergraduate program offers training in playwriting, directing, acting, voice and theater management. The theater school had 186 students in the year ending june 30, 2025.
Playwrights Rehearsal Studios
When not in use by the school, playwrights rehearsal studios are available for rent at affordable rates to hundreds of arts and education non-profits and community organizations each year, as well as to individual and commercial groups.
Funders
Who pays for it.
From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.
Grants
Federal money
The auditor reported no findings.
By the numbers
The FY2025 990, line by line.
Download 990
| Line | FY25 | FY24 | FY23 | FY22 | FY21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| End of yearLn 1g | $58K | $57K | $57K | $56K | $56K |
| Line | Start FY25 | End FY25 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and savingsLn 1–2 | $2.2M | $1.7M |
| InvestmentsLn 11–13 | $12K | $159K |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $15.7M | $19.5M |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $47.0M | $46.6M |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $24.7M | $23.9M |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $22.3M | $22.7M |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5 | $700K | $453K | $205K | $41K |
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $5.5M | $4.6M | $364K | $582K |
| Pension plan contributionsLn 8 | $64K | $52K | $6K | $6K |
| Other employee benefitsLn 9 | $385K | $302K | $34K | $49K |
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $595K | $481K | $54K | $60K |
| Legal feesLn 11b | $17K | $17K | ||
| Accounting feesLn 11c | $61K | $61K | ||
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $599K | $374K | $94K | $131K |
| Advertising and promotionLn 12 | $219K | $213K | $5K | $601 |
| Office expensesLn 13 | $187K | $169K | $6K | $12K |
| OccupancyLn 16 | $2.6M | $2.6M | $35K | $29K |
| TravelLn 17 | $81K | $80K | $315 | $342 |
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $1.3M | $1.2M | $80K | $16K |
| InsuranceLn 23 | $153K | $127K | $14K | $12K |
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $1.3M | $1.3M | $40K | $35K |
| All other expensesLn 24e | $381K | $165K | $62K | $154K |
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $14.2M | $12.0M | $1.1M | $1.1M |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 Latest ViewingFiled with the IRS May 13, 2026 | $14.7M | $14.2M | $435K | $22.7M | 990 PDF |
| FY2024Filed with the IRS May 14, 2025 | $14.1M | $14.8M | −$670K | $22.3M | 990 PDF |
| FY2023Filed with the IRS May 6, 2024 | $10.6M | $13.5M | −$2.9M | $23.1M | 990 PDF |
| FY2022Filed with the IRS Mar 22, 2023 | $13.7M | $11.3M | $2.5M | $26.0M | 990 PDF |
| FY2021Filed with the IRS May 2, 2022 | $8.1M | $8.0M | $118K | $23.7M | 990 PDF |
| FY2020Filed with the IRS May 13, 2021 | $10.4M | $12.1M | −$1.6M | $23.6M | 990 PDF |
Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2025 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $14,666,869 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 31 of 33 board members independent, 1 to look at
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $14,666,869 across 11 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $14,231,938 across 16 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $46,598,112 assets, 18 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $22,713,929 net assets at year end
Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2025 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File
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