The Puppet Co was established to create Puppet theatre, especially for children and family audiences, as a synthesis of the visual and performing arts; through interpretive programs including classes, demonstrations, and exhibits, to inform and excite the public about the potential of puppetry; and to establish theaters to house those programs.

501(c)(3) charity; gifts are tax-deductible.
95¢ of each $1 spent went to programs.
$97K paid to officers and key staff.
Mission: Form 990 Part I, line 1 · Status: IRS Pub. 78 · Programs: Part IX · Pay: Part VII

Before you give

FY2022 · Form 990Independent: from IRS data, not the org
Download 990
IRS status
501(c)(3)
not on the IRS revocation list
Looks good: listed by the IRS and not on the revocation list.
IRS BMF · Auto-Revocation List
Tax-deductible gifts
Yes
Donations are tax-deductible
Looks good: the IRS lists gifts to it as deductible.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS BMF
Latest return
FY2025
latest Form 990
Looks good: the latest return is for FY2025, 1 tax year back; within 2 tax years.
IRS e-file · Filing history
Surplus or deficit
2 of 6
filings with a surplus
Average surplus $9K a year · 3% of revenue · last 6 filings
Worth a look: a surplus in 2 of the last 6 filings.
Pt I · Ln 19 · 6 filings
Spent on programs
95%
of spending
Looks good: 95% of spending went to programs; 75% or more.
Pt IX · Ln 25 · col B
Pay to officers and key staff
$97K
to officers and key staff · 22% of spending
Worth a look: pay to officers and key staff is 22% of spending; over 20%.
Pt VII · Sec A
2 mo
of spending, in cash
Fine: 1.7 months of spending in cash; 1 to 3.
Pt X · Ln 1–2 · Pt I · Ln 18
Named funders
6
named funders · $63K
Looks good: 6 funders name it on their filings; 3 or more.
Funders’ Sch. I, 990-PF
Liabilities
$42K
19% of total assets
Looks good: liabilities are 19% of assets; 50% or less.
Pt X · Ln 26
Independent board members
4
of 5 voting members
Looks good: 4 of 5 voting members are independent, a majority.
Pt VI · Ln 1a–1b
Looks goodFineWorth a lookConcernNo data yetTap a box for the reason.
Revenue
$397K
+44% vs prior year
Spent
$436K
To programs
95%
Net assets
$172K
By yearFY2020–FY2025
Revenue
$397K
FY2022▲ +44%
Tap a bar for its year
Revenue by fiscal year
FY2020$259K
FY2021$277K
FY2022$397K
FY2023$430K
FY2024$417K
FY2025$318K
Expenses
$436K
FY2022▲ +52%
Tap a bar for its year
Expenses by fiscal year
FY2020$113K
FY2021$288K
FY2022$436K
FY2023$451K
FY2024$354K
FY2025$402K
Net assets
$172K
FY2022▼ -9%
Tap a bar for its year
Net assets by fiscal year
FY2020$201K
FY2021$190K
FY2022$172K
FY2023$165K
FY2024$156K
FY2025$79K

From the FY2022 Form 990 · see the original

Give Claim
You’re viewing the FY2022 filing — not the latest on file. See the latest (FY2025) →

Is it real?

Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in Jan 1990.

IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File

Where the money goes

95 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.

Program services 95% · $416K Management & general 11% · $46K

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

12 people listed on the 990; $97K paid to officers and key staff.

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation
Artistic Director
$49,670Pt VII · Sec A
Operations Manager
$47,305Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Secretary
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Treasurer
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Isabel Dawson’s $55K as Executive Director is at the 50th percentile of top reported officer pay among 2216 $100K–1M 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 · 5 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Isabel Dawson$55,000$16,077———
Elizabeth Dapo—$50,000$49,670$41,385$19,027
Rachel Goldberg—$32,769$47,305$40,000—
Toni Goldberg————$12,308
Justin Mohay———$1,800—

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 Puppet Co executive salaries →

On this list? Claim this org

Something off? Claim to add context

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

Creates engaging puppet shows and educational programs for children and families.

Questions for Puppet Co

Tap to ask. Puppet Co sees how many people are interested.

Your first name shows with your question. Puppet Co answers here, for everyone.

Provided by the organization

Know this org? Add your story

2 programs · $806K · in their own filed words · FY2022
01

The Puppet Co. is committed to providing accessible educational entertainment to children by producing classic children's stories using the fine art of puppet performance. Attendance was approximately 26,000 during the year.

$416Kprogram expense
02

The puppet co. Is commited to providing accessible educational entertainment to children by producing classic childrens stories using the fine art of puppet performance. Attendance was approximately 26,000 during the year.

$390Kprogram expense

Funders

Who pays for it.

From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.

Grants

Schedule I · funders on record
Grants received · FY2024
See all 6 funders →

By the numbers

The FY2022 990, line by line.

1The main four
Money inPt VIII
$397K
Ln 12
Fees for servicesLn 2g$234K
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$137K
Other incomeLn 4–11$27K
Money outPt IX
$436K
Ln 25
Programscol B$416K
Managementcol C$46K
Owns and owesPt X
$172K
net assets · Ln 32
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$61K
Total assetsLn 16$217K
LiabilitiesLn 26$42K
PeoplePt VI, VII
12
listed · VII A
PaidVII A2
Voting boardVI 1a5
IndependentVI 1b4
2In more detail
Revenue in detailPt VIII
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$137K
Government grantsLn 1e$88K
Fees for servicesLn 2g$234K
Other incomeLn 4–11$27K
Total revenueLn 12$397K
Assets in detailPt X, end of year
Cash and savings togetherLn 1–2$61K
Total assetsLn 16$217K
LiabilitiesLn 26$42K
Net assetsLn 32$172K
OperationsPt I, VI
EmployeesI 541
VolunteersI 621
Fiscal year endsHeaderDecember
Conflict-of-interest policyVI 12aYes
Whistleblower policyVI 13Yes
Records policyVI 14Yes

Filing history

YearMoney inMoney outIn minus outNet assetsDownload
FY2025 Latest $318K$402K−$84K$79K 990 PDF
FY2024 $417K$354K$64K$156K 990 PDF
FY2023 $430K$451K−$21K$165K 990 PDF
FY2022 Viewing $397K$436K−$38K$172K 990 PDF
FY2021 $277K$288K−$11K$190K 990 PDF
FY2020 $259K$113K$147K$201K 990 PDF

More to add? Claim this org

Schedules filed Part IV

III · Programs R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons A · Public support O · Explanations
See the full FY2022 990 (1 part)
Part VI · Governance 4 of 5 board members independent, no flags
VI-1a Voting members of the governing body5
VI-1b Independent voting members4
VI-2 Family or business relationship among officers or directorsNo
VI-12a Written conflict of interest policyYes
VI-13 Written whistleblower policyYes
VI-14 Document retention and destruction policyYes
VI-15a Process for setting top official's payYes

Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2022 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File

Similar organizations you could support · Compare with another nonprofit

Names, privacy, and removal requests More

The names, titles, and compensation shown on this page are reproduced from IRS Form 990 filings, which are public records.

Philanthropy.org does not alter the content of those filings. All information appears exactly as reported by the filing organization for the tax year shown.

We publish only information contained in the public IRS filing — and less than the filing contains. Our profile pages do not display street addresses, telephone numbers, personal email addresses, or other personal contact information, even where the filing includes them.

Many people share the same name. A name shown on this page reflects only what one organization reported in one IRS filing for one tax year. It should not be interpreted as identifying any other individual with the same or a similar name.

If you are no longer affiliated with the organization, your name will generally stop appearing in future IRS filings once the organization no longer reports you. Pages for tax years in which you were reported remain published because those filings remain part of the public record.

Philanthropy.org does not alter or remove IRS filing records. Removing a page from this website would not remove the underlying IRS filing, which remains publicly available from the IRS and other publishers of the same information.

If you believe the IRS filing itself is inaccurate, corrections must be made by the filing organization or the IRS directly.

Your org? Add context

Made it to the end? Claim this org

All figures are derived from public IRS Form 990 filings and are presented without evaluation of any organization. philanthropy.org does not rate, score, or rank organizations, including the pay comparisons above.