Golden Thread Productions

Tax-deductible

San Francisco, CA501(c)(3)Arts & CultureEIN 75-3009451

This page gets seen. Tell your story. Claim this org.

Golden Thread Productions is the first American theatre company devoted to plays from or about the Middle East Golden Thread's signature programs include ReOrient Festival and Forum, development and production of full-length plays, New Threads staged reading series, Golden Thread Fairytale Players theatre for young audiences, and an annual Women's Day event.

501(c)(3) charity; gifts are tax-deductible.
65¢ of each $1 spent went to programs.
$72K 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

FY2024 · 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
FY2024
latest Form 990
Looks good: the latest return is for FY2024, 2 tax years back; within 2 tax years.
IRS e-file · Filing history
Surplus or deficit
3 of 5
filings with a surplus
Average surplus $58K a year · 10% of revenue · last 5 filings
Worth a look: a surplus in 3 of the last 5 filings.
Pt I · Ln 19 · 5 filings
Spent on programs
65%
of spending
Worth a look: 65% of spending went to programs; under 65%.
Pt IX · Ln 25 · col B
Pay to officers and key staff
$72K
to officers and key staff · 11% of spending
Top officer’s pay higher than 67% of similar orgs
Looks good: pay to officers and key staff is 11% of spending; 15% or less.
Pt VII · Sec A
Cash reserves
5 mo
of spending, in cash
Looks good: 4.6 months of spending in cash; 3 or more.
Pt X · Ln 1–2 · Pt I · Ln 18
Named funders
9
named funders · $175K
Looks good: 9 funders name it on their filings; 3 or more.
Funders’ Sch. I, 990-PF
Liabilities
$17K
4% of total assets
Looks good: liabilities are 4% of assets; 50% or less.
Pt X · Ln 26
Independent board members
7
of 8 voting members
Looks good: 7 of 8 voting members are independent, a majority.
Pt VI · Ln 1a–1b
Looks goodFineWorth a lookConcernNo data yetTap a box for the reason.
Revenue
$375K
-24% vs prior year
Spent
$646K
To programs
65%
Net assets
$373K
By yearFY2020–FY2024
Revenue
$375K
FY2024▼ -24%
Revenue by fiscal year
FY2020$813K
FY2021$548K
FY2022$665K
FY2023$491K
FY2024$375K
Expenses
$646K
FY2024▼ -3%
Expenses by fiscal year
FY2020$331K
FY2021$348K
FY2022$612K
FY2023$666K
FY2024$646K
Net assets
$373K
FY2024▼ -42%
Net assets by fiscal year
FY2020$565K
FY2021$766K
FY2022$819K
FY2023$644K
FY2024$373K

From the FY2024 Form 990 · see the original

Give Claim

Is it real?

Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2024. IRS ruling in Aug 2002.

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

Where the money goes

65 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.

Program services 65% · $419K Management & general 29% · $188K Fundraising 6% · $39K

Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.

Something off? The org can add a note here. Request edit privileges.

Who runs it and what they're paid

8 people listed on the 990; $72K paid to officers and key staff.

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation
Exec Artist Dir
$72,000Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Treasurer
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Secretary
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Sahar Assaf’s $72K as Exec Artist Dir is at the 67th 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 · 2 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Sahar Assaf$72,000$72,181$72,500$45,769—
Torange Yeghiazarian———$57,227$63,000

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 Golden Thread Productions executive salaries →

Are you one of these people? Claim this org to confirm your role

Something off? The org can add a note here. Request edit privileges.

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 15aNo

Programs and updates

Stages plays from or about the Middle East, fostering cultural understanding.

Provided by the organization

This section is blank until Golden Thread Productions claims this page.

Know this organization? Claim it to add your story

3 program services account for $417K of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2024.
01

FULL-LENGTH PLAYS AND NEW PLAY DEVELOPMENT (Mainstage and New Threads) In addition to the production of full-length plays, Golden Thread ensures the discovery and development of new playwrights and plays through commissions and development programs such as readings and workshops.

$341Kprogram expense
02

COMMUNITY OUTREACH EVENTS (Womens Day, General Artistic, Fiscal Sponsorship) Golden Thread celebrates International Womens Day each year with What Do the Women Say?, a curated evening highlighting the works of Middle Eastern women artists.

$73Kprogram expense
03

REORIENT FESTIVAL AND FORUM (ReOrient) The ReOrient Festival of Short Plays was inaugurated in 1999 to present alternative perspectives of the Middle East and to showcase the multiplicity of stories, voices and styles from the region and has since becomes Golden Threads most recognized and celebrated program.

$3Kprogram expense

Run this program? Claim this org to tell your story

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 9 funders →

By the numbers

The FY2024 990, line by line.

1The main four
Money inPt VIII
$375K
Ln 12
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$304K
Fees for servicesLn 2g$67K
Other incomeLn 4–11$4K
Money outPt IX
$646K
Ln 25
Programscol B$419K
Managementcol C$188K
Fundraisingcol D$39K
Owns and owesPt X
$373K
net assets · Ln 32
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$246K
Total assetsLn 16$390K
LiabilitiesLn 26$17K
PeoplePt VI, VII
8
listed · VII A
PaidVII A1
Voting boardVI 1a8
IndependentVI 1b7
2In more detail
Revenue in detailPt VIII
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$304K
Government grantsLn 1e$54K
Fees for servicesLn 2g$67K
Other incomeLn 4–11$4K
Gains on assetsLn 7$0
Total revenueLn 12$375K
Assets in detailPt X, end of year
CashLn 1$66K
SavingsLn 2$179K
Cash and savings togetherLn 1–2$246K
InvestmentsLn 11–13$0
Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c$0
Other assetsLn 15$10K
Total assetsLn 16$390K
LiabilitiesLn 26$17K
Net assetsLn 32$373K
OperationsPt I, VI
EmployeesI 55
Fiscal year endsHeaderDecember
Conflict-of-interest policyVI 12aYes
Whistleblower policyVI 13Yes
Records policyVI 14Yes
3Year over year
Balance sheet, start vs end of yearPt X · col A, B
LineStart FY24End FY24
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$375K$246K
InvestmentsLn 11–13$0
Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c$0
Total assetsLn 16$705K$390K
LiabilitiesLn 26$61K$17K
Net assetsLn 32$644K$373K
4Every line
Statement of functional expensesPt IX · every line
LineTotalProgramsManagementFundraising
Grants to domestic organizationsLn 1$0
Grants to domestic individualsLn 2$0
Grants and assistance to foreign recipientsLn 3$0
Benefits paid to or for membersLn 4$0
Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5$72K$71K$1K
Pay of disqualified personsLn 6$0
Other salaries and wagesLn 7$238K$107K$101K$30K
Pension plan contributionsLn 8$0
Other employee benefitsLn 9$27K$17K$8K$2K
Payroll taxesLn 10$46K$17K$27K$1K
Management feesLn 11a$0
Legal feesLn 11b$0
Accounting feesLn 11c$12K$12K
Lobbying feesLn 11d$0
Professional fundraising feesLn 11e$0
Investment management feesLn 11f$0
Other fees for servicesLn 11g$133K$111K$23K
Advertising and promotionLn 12$3K$2K$1K
Office expensesLn 13$23K$15K$6K$2K
Information technologyLn 14$0
RoyaltiesLn 15$5K$5K
OccupancyLn 16$46K$41K$3K$2K
TravelLn 17$0
Travel and entertainment for public officialsLn 18$0
Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19$2K$2K
InterestLn 20$0
Payments to affiliatesLn 21$0
Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22$0
InsuranceLn 23$4K$3K$861$431
Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24$36K$32K$4K$474
All other expensesLn 24e$0
Total functional expensesLn 25$646K$419K$188K$39K

Filing history

YearMoney inMoney outIn minus outNet assetsDownload
FY2024 Latest Viewing $375K$646K−$271K$373K 990 PDF
FY2023 $491K$666K−$174K$644K 990 PDF
FY2022 $665K$612K$53K$819K 990 PDF
FY2021 $548K$348K$201K$766K 990 PDF
FY2020 $813K$331K$482K$565K 990 PDF

Want to add your own materials alongside these filings? Claim this org

Schedules filed Part IV

III · Programs I · Grants R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons A · Public support F · Foreign M · Noncash
See the full FY2024 990 (4 parts)
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $374,921 across 11 lines filed
VIII-1e Government grants$53,761
VIII-1f All other contributions, gifts and grants$250,545
VIII-1h Total contributions, gifts and grants$304,306
VIII-2a-f Program service revenue, itemized rows (sum of 2a–2f as filed)Related to mission $66,680$66,680
VIII-3 Investment income$0
VIII-5 Royalties$0
VIII-6 Net rental income or loss$0
VIII-7 Net gain or loss on sales of assets$0
VIII-8 Net income from fundraising events$0
VIII-11a-d Other revenue, itemized rows (sum of 11a–11d as filed)Related to mission $3,935$3,935
VIII-12 Total revenueRelated to mission $70,615$374,921
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $645,955 across 31 lines filed
IX-1 Grants to domestic organizations$0
IX-2 Grants to domestic individuals$0
IX-3 Grants and assistance to foreign recipients$0
IX-4 Benefits paid to or for members$0
IX-5 Pay of current officers, directors and key staffPrograms $70,560 · Fundraising $1,440$72,000
IX-6 Pay of disqualified persons$0
IX-7 Other salaries and wagesPrograms $107,217 · Management $101,490 · Fundraising $29,705$238,412
IX-8 Pension plan contributions$0
IX-9 Other employee benefitsPrograms $17,152 · Management $7,540 · Fundraising $2,285$26,977
IX-10 Payroll taxesPrograms $17,092 · Management $27,330 · Fundraising $1,142$45,564
IX-11a Management fees$0
IX-11b Legal fees$0
IX-11c Accounting feesManagement $11,676$11,676
IX-11d Lobbying fees$0
IX-11e Professional fundraising fees$0
IX-11f Investment management fees$0
IX-11g Other fees for servicesPrograms $110,510 · Management $22,503$133,013
IX-12 Advertising and promotionPrograms $1,986 · Management $1,224$3,210
IX-13 Office expensesPrograms $14,666 · Management $6,000 · Fundraising $2,262$22,928
IX-14 Information technology$0
IX-15 RoyaltiesPrograms $4,651$4,651
IX-16 OccupancyPrograms $40,569 · Management $3,336 · Fundraising $1,668$45,573
IX-17 Travel$0
IX-18 Travel and entertainment for public officials$0
IX-19 Conferences, conventions and meetingsManagement $1,509$1,509
IX-20 Interest$0
IX-21 Payments to affiliates$0
IX-22 Depreciation, depletion and amortization$0
IX-23 InsurancePrograms $3,014 · Management $861 · Fundraising $431$4,306
IX-24 Other expenses (24a–d)Programs $31,562 · Management $4,100 · Fundraising $474$36,136
IX-24e All other expenses$0
IX-25 Total functional expensesPrograms $418,979 · Management $187,569 · Fundraising $39,407$645,955
Part X · Balance sheet $390,285 assets, 20 lines filed
X-1 Cash, non-interest-bearingStart of year $72,934$66,284
X-2 Savings and temporary cash investmentsStart of year $301,888$179,330
X-3 Pledges and grants receivable$0
X-4 Accounts receivableStart of year $254,631$117,772
X-8 Inventories for sale or use$0
X-9 Prepaid expenses and deferred chargesStart of year $17,202$17,202
X-10c Land, buildings and equipment, net$0
X-11 Publicly traded securities$0
X-12 Other securities$0
X-13 Program-related investments$0
X-14 Intangible assets$0
X-15 Other assetsStart of year $58,734$9,697
X-16 Total assetsStart of year $705,389$390,285
X-17 Accounts payable and accrued expensesStart of year $9,540$8,757
X-25 Other liabilitiesStart of year $51,384$8,097
X-26 Total liabilitiesStart of year $60,924$16,854
X-27 Net assets without donor restrictionsStart of year $377,465$298,431
X-28 Net assets with donor restrictionsStart of year $267,000$75,000
X-32 Total net assets or fund balancesStart of year $644,465$373,431
X-33 Total liabilities and net assetsStart of year $705,389$390,285
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $373,431 net assets at year end
XI-1 Total revenue$374,921
XI-2 Total expenses$645,955
XI-3 Revenue less expenses−$271,034
XI-4 Net assets at start of year$644,465
XI-10 Net assets at end of year$373,431

Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2024 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.

If you ARE the filing organization, claim this org and add context

Made it to the end? Claim this organization

Keep this kind of thing free
Keep public charity data easy to read.

Free to the public, because obviously. Like this? Pay it forward. Don't like this? Help us get better.

Card, Apple Pay or Google Pay through Stripe. One time.
Keep this kind of thing free
Keep public charity data easy to read.

Free to the public, because obviously. Like this? Pay it forward. Don't like this? Help us get better.

Card, Apple Pay or Google Pay through Stripe. One time.

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.