League of Chicago Theatres Foundation
Chicago, IL · EIN 36-3031980. Reported 73 grants totalling $4,681,768 to 70 organizations across tax years 2020-2024, on Form 990 Schedule I.
Does this grantmaker accept applications?
Its tax return does not say, and we will not guess. Private foundations file Form 990-PF, which asks outright whether they fund only organizations they select themselves -- 78% say yes, and that one answer is what lets the rest of this site tell you which foundations are worth approaching. Grantmaking charities like this one file a regular Form 990 instead, and the IRS never puts the question to them. Anyone claiming to know the answer from the filing is inventing it.
Three things in the filing do bear on it:
- What kind of organization it is. For League of Chicago Theatres Foundation, by its IRS classification it raises and distributes funds for arts & culture (NTEE A120).
- How spread out its giving is. 70 distinct organizations, with 82% of the dollars going to the largest single recipient. That is extreme concentration. A grantmaker sending three quarters of its money to one organization is in practice a support fund for that organization, whatever its classification says, and an unsolicited request is very unlikely to go anywhere.
- How much its list changes. 0% of one year's grantees are funded again the next, across 3 year-to-year transitions. That is below the 56% median for grantmaking charities, and well below the 67% median for private foundations. It describes the organizations it already funds, not whether it would consider a new one.
How big are its grants?
The median reported grant is $10,000. Half of what it reported fell between $10,000 and $10,000; the smallest was $5,360 and the largest $3,861,511. If you are asking for materially more than the top of that range, you are asking the wrong organization.
1 of those grants was non-cash -- goods, property or services worth $3,861,511 in total. In-kind giving is real support but it is not a cheque.
Every organization it funded
This is the complete list from its filings, largest first. Recipients are grouped by the EIN the filer reported, not by name, so an organization that was typed differently in two years appears once rather than twice.
| Organization | Location | Total received | Grants | Years funded | Last |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| League of Chicago Theatres | Chicago, IL | $3,861,511 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Free Street Programs Inc | Chicago, IL | $27,500 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Albany Park Theater Project | Chicago, IL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Center for the Perf Arts Gsu | University Park, IL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Chicago Childrens Theatre | Chicago, IL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Chicago Sinfonietta Inc | Chicago, IL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Chicago Theatre Group Inc | Chicago, IL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Hyde Park Art Center | Chicago, IL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Lyric Opera of Chicago | Chicago, IL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Northlight Theatre Inc | Evanston, IL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Steppenwolf Theater Co | Chicago, IL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Elmhurst Art Museum | Elmhurst, IL | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Maywood Fine Arts Association | Maywood, IL | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Aguijon II Theater Company | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Archi-Treasures Association | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Arts of Life | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University Inc | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Changing Worlds | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Chicago Blues Museum | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Chicago City Theatre Company | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Chicago Dance Crash Nfp | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Collabor Action Theatre Company Inc | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Congo Square Theatre Company | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Court Theatre Fund | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Crossing Borders Music Collective | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Definition Theatre Company | Skokie, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Elastic Arts Foundation | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Englewood Arts a Missouri Non-Profit Corporation | Independence, MO | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Firehouse Dream Inc | Maywood, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Full Spectrum Features Nfp | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Grant Park Orchestral Association | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Green Star Movement Nfp | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Homewood Science Center | Homewood, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra | Park Forest, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Institute for Latino Progress | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| International Latino Cultural Center of Chicago | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Invictus Theatre Company | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Kalapriya Foundation Center for Indian Performing Art Inc | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Momenta Inc | Oak Park, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Mudlark Theater Company | Evanston, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Muntu Dance Theatre | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Non-Op Inc | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Oil Lamp Theater Nfp | Glenview, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Old Town School of Folk Music Inc | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Playmakers Laboratory Theatre | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Salt Creek Ballet Company | Westmont, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Skyart Nfp | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Snow City Arts Foundation | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Special Gifts Theatre Inc | Northbrook, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Theatre Y | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Water People Theater Group Nfp | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| West Side Show Room | Rockford, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Crystal Lake Strikers Drumline Inc Nfp | Crystal Lake, IL | $9,712 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Art Encounter | Evanston, IL | $9,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Batavia Foundation for Educational Excellence | Batavia, IL | $9,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Subtext Studio Theater | Chicago, IL | $8,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Freeport Arts Center | Freeport, IL | $8,250 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Berwyn Public Art Initiative Nfp | Berwyn, IL | $8,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Korean Perfoming Arts Institute of Chicago | Chicago, IL | $8,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| The Wasteshed | Chicago, IL | $8,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Chopin Theatre Productions Nfp | Chicago, IL | $7,500 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Filament Theatre Ensemble Nfp | Chicago, IL | $7,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Prairie Center Arts Foundation | Schaumburg, IL | $7,500 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Rivendell Theatre Ensemble | Chicago, IL | $7,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Totallink to Community Inc | Northbrook, IL | $7,500 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Barrington Youth Dance Ensemble Inc | Barrington, IL | $6,785 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Performing Arts at Metropolis | Arlington Hts, IL | $6,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Porchlight Music Theatre Chicago | Chicago, IL | $6,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Theater Wit Nfp | Chicago, IL | $6,150 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Sharing Notes | Chicago, IL | $5,360 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
3 of 70 (4%) received money in more than one year over the 5 years we hold. Remember the $5,000 floor: an organization funded every year at $3,000 shows up here as never funded at all.
What the money was for
Taken verbatim from the purpose column of its filings, largest first. This is the closest thing to a statement of what it funds, in its own words.
- Center for the Perf Arts Gsu
POWERING THE ARTS PROGRAM
What kind of organizations it funds
By the activity category the IRS assigns each recipient, for the 61 of 70 recipients we could match to a registered organization. The categories are the IRS's, not ours -- Schedule I reports the recipient's EIN, so this is a lookup rather than a name match.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants reported | Total | Median grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 12 | $112,500 | $10,000 |
| 2021 | 26 | $299,897 | $10,000 |
| 2022 | 1 | $7,500 | $7,500 |
| 2023 | 16 | $201,000 | $10,000 |
| 2024 | 18 | $4,060,871 | $10,000 |
Tax years, not calendar years, and the most recent year is usually incomplete -- Form 990 arrives about a year after the year it covers, so a low final year means late paperwork rather than a grantmaker winding down.
Where its money goes
100% of its giving went to organizations in Illinois. Community foundations and federated funds are usually the most geographically bounded funders there are -- being outside the footprint is normally disqualifying in a way that a weak programme fit is not.
Down to the city
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Funders that support the same organizations
These grantmakers and private foundations gave to organizations this one also funded. Shared grantees are a sign of overlapping priorities and nothing more: they do not show that any of these funders would consider a new organization. Each page says what its filings show.
How to approach this grantmaker
- Look for a published programme first. Unlike most private foundations, organizations of this kind often do run open, deadlined grant cycles with written guidelines. Its own website is the authority on that; this page is the authority on who it has actually paid.
- Check you are its size. The median reported grant is $10,000 -- and because grants under $5,000 need not be reported, it very likely writes smaller cheques than this page can see.
- Check you are in its geography. Its giving concentrates in Illinois.
- Read the recipient list for organizations like yours. If nothing on it resembles your work, that is a real answer and a cheap one to get.
Related guides
Where these numbers come from
Everything above is taken from League of Chicago Theatres Foundation's own Form 990 Schedule I filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 5 returns (tax years 2020-2024). Grant figures are from its returns. Recipient classifications, the concentration and retention figures and the funders that support the same organizations are our own calculations from them, described in how we build this.
On its most recent return it told the IRS it made grants to 15 section 501(c)(3) organizations and 3 other organizations. That is the filer's own count for one year; the totals above cover every year we hold.
Address of record on the latest return: 17 N Wabash 520, Chicago, IL, 60602.
EIN 36-3031980 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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