Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in Nov 2015.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
78 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.
Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.
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Who runs it and what they're paid
56 people listed on the 990; $2.0M paid to officers and key staff.
Robert Meya’s $550K as General Director is at the 82nd 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Robert Meya | $550,058 | $530,961 | $535,293 | $523,671 | $479,942 | $404,578 |
| Harry Bicket | $258,154 | $263,654 | $255,000 | $288,846 | $171,346 | $211,846 |
| Heather Kemp | $223,610 | $207,396 | $204,374 | $198,810 | $188,862 | $181,684 |
| Bradley Woolbright Dir of | — | — | — | — | $206,590 | — |
| Paul Horpedahl | — | — | — | — | — | $201,456 |
| David Lomeli | $188,871 | $189,260 | $197,682 | $130,073 | — | — |
| Bradley Woolbright | — | — | — | — | — | $188,897 |
| Allison Swenson | — | — | $179,596 | $160,108 | $150,108 | $140,086 |
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 The Santa Fe Opera executive salaries →On this list? Claim this org
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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
Presents world-class operatic performances while fostering appreciation for the art form through educational school residencies, teacher training, and broad community engagement programs.
Questions for The Santa Fe Opera
Your first name shows with your question. The Santa Fe Opera answers here, for everyone.
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One of the nation's most important summer festivals, the santa fe opera is praised for its innovative repertory and high standards of excellence. There were approximately 69,168 attendees of the 2025 season.
During the opera's 2025 fiscal year, community engagement programs served approximately 25,000 individuals in-person and virtually, including over 20,000 adults and 3,000 youths in person. Additionally 465 volunteers engaged with the opera both on site and in surrounding communities contributing 8,400 volunteer hours.
Funders
Who pays for it.
From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.
Grants
By the numbers
The FY2025 990, line by line.
Download 990
| Line | Start FY25 | End FY25 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and savingsLn 1–2 | $6.6M | $6.1M |
| InvestmentsLn 11–13 | $135.0M | $163.6M |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $40.9M | $38.9M |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $191.2M | $214.0M |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $2.8M | $3.4M |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $188.4M | $210.6M |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5 | $1.1M | $389K | $459K | $286K |
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $11.8M | $9.7M | $1.5M | $627K |
| Pension plan contributionsLn 8 | $262K | $103K | $151K | $8K |
| Other employee benefitsLn 9 | $1.2M | $940K | $223K | $79K |
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $919K | $733K | $122K | $64K |
| Legal feesLn 11b | $136K | $136K | ||
| Accounting feesLn 11c | $120K | $120K | ||
| Lobbying feesLn 11d | $31K | $31K | ||
| Investment management feesLn 11f | $468K | $468K | ||
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $3.9M | $3.3M | $334K | $225K |
| Advertising and promotionLn 12 | $831K | $830K | $1K | $72 |
| Office expensesLn 13 | $773K | $463K | $175K | $135K |
| Information technologyLn 14 | $453K | $213K | $162K | $78K |
| RoyaltiesLn 15 | $103K | $103K | ||
| OccupancyLn 16 | $1.3M | $1.3M | $36K | |
| TravelLn 17 | $2.7M | $2.7M | $44K | $35K |
| Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19 | $41K | $10K | $31K | $35 |
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $2.4M | $1.6M | $803K | $13K |
| InsuranceLn 23 | $957K | $534K | $423K | |
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $2.5M | $2.0M | $118K | $365K |
| All other expensesLn 24e | $354K | $328K | $25K | $39 |
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $32.4M | $25.1M | $5.4M | $1.9M |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 Latest Viewing | $42.1M | $32.4M | $9.7M | $210.6M | 990 PDF |
| FY2024 | $35.1M | $31.8M | $3.3M | $188.4M | 990 PDF |
| FY2023 | $37.3M | $31.0M | $6.3M | $165.9M | 990 PDF |
| FY2022 | $33.1M | $31.2M | $2.0M | $153.0M | 990 PDF |
| FY2021 | $58.6M | $26.8M | $31.8M | $173.0M | 990 PDF |
| FY2020 | $24.5M | $16.4M | $8.2M | $132.9M | 990 PDF |
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Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2025 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $42,090,577 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 40 of 40 board members independent, no flags
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $42,090,577 across 12 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $32,420,149 across 21 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $214,033,836 assets, 20 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $210,629,251 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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