Count Basie Theatre Inc
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
THE COUNT BASIE CENTER FOR THE ARTS IS NEW JERSEY'S PREMIER CENTER FOR THE CULTURAL ARTS, DEDICATED TO FOSTERING POWERFUL, INCLUSIVE ARTISTIC EXPERIENCES AND CREATIVE EXCHANGE OF IDEAS. THE BASIE MISSION IS TO INSPIRE, EDUCATE AND ENTERTAIN THROUGH ITS DISTINCT AND ENGAGING CULTURAL AND ARTISTIC OFFERINGS THAT EMBRACE AND AMPLIFY THE DIVERSITY OF THE REGION. AS A NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION, THE BASIE IS COMMITTED TO ENRICHING THE COMMUNITY'S QUALITY OF LIFE BY GENERATING OPPORTUNITIES FOR PARTICIPATION IN THE ARTS, PARTNERING WITH SCHOOLS, COLLABORATING WITH OTHER MISSION-BASED ORGANIZATIONS AND DRIVING REGIONAL ECONOMIC PROSPERITY.
- Income
- $28.2 million
- Spending
- $26.0 million
- Spent on programs
- 86%
- Reserves
- -5.8 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- fees for its services, 73%
- Employees
- 419
- Volunteers
- 38
- Highest pay
- $656,608, ceo & president
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Fair: 50 out of 100. Higher than 16% of charities in its peer group (arts and culture, $10m to $100m).
Reserves
0 of 35Spendable reserves are negative: it owes or has committed more than it holds.
Debt
10 of 20It owes 39% of what it owns.
Living within its means
15 of 15Income exceeded spending by 8% of income.
Income trend
10 of 15Income fell 3% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1586% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 25 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 34% of charities in its peer group (arts and culture, $10m to $100m).
Independent board
25 of 2538 of 38 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
8 of 8Has a written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
7 of 7Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
10 of 10Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Pay set independently
5 of 5Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.
Independent check of accounts
15 of 15Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Impact evidence
Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.
Programs described in its return (1)
- $22.3 million spent. The Count Basie Center for the Arts continues to persevere in its mission to create shared educational, artistic, and community experiences that ignite curiosity, understanding, and joy. Our responsive, inclusive programming continued to reflect the diverse spirit and aspirations of Basie Center patrons, students, artists and staff, welcoming them to participate as their most authentic selves. In FY2025, all facets of the Count Basie Center Academy - now renamed in honor of philanthropists Fran and Paul Turner - finally joined beneath one roof as part of the Grunin Arts Education Building. The Academy welcomed nearly 1,500 students in FY2025, engaging them with a variety of experiences - from mainstage productions like "Something Rotten", "Shrek The Musical Jr.", plus Disney's "The Jungle Book"Newies", - to acting, dancing and vocal lessons, instruction in auditioning for television and film, and more. At the Count Basie Center Conservatory of Music, 473 students received regular instruction in piano, classical guitar, woodwinds, strings and other instruments, in addition to group experiences such as ensembles and orchestra. In FY2025, 345 students were scholarship recipients. Providing these scholarships and continuing to remove barriers to participation in the arts is a hallmark of the Basie Center's Forever For Everyone endowment campaign, which has raised more than $17 million towards its $20m goal. 'Forever For Everyone also supports the Basie Center Fund for Strategic Growth, which Provides funds to launch new programs, especially those which deepen our commitment to cultural competency, racial equity, and social inclusion. In line with our continued focus on promoting community and internal Diversity, Equity and Inclusion efforts, the Count Basie Center continued its efforts to train staffers to conduct DEI onboarding efforts, continued its partnership with Two River Theater to train and maintain a bilingual workforce, and continued implementations as recommended by the staff-wide DEI Task Force. Our DEI work helps inform the ways in which we engage the community through our performing arts and education programs, including events celebrating Dr. Martin Luther King, Cinco de Mayo and Dia de los Muertos. 50+ area students participated in the annual, free Louis and Gia Maria Prima Music Camp, with many of these students having never previously picked up a musical instrument. The Count Basie Center Gospel Choir headlined Basie Center stages and numerous public events, while our partners with Calpulli Mexican Dance Company continued its onsite classes and performances in promotion of traditional Mexican folkloric dance. In September 2024, the Basie Center held its first-ever Hispanic Film Festival, drawing fans, industry leaders and aspiring film and acting professionals to Basie Center Cinemas for three days of screenings, talkbacks and career workshops. The Basie Center's Breakthrough Filmmakers Fest, celebrating the state's growing community of amateur filmmakers, saw a flurry of submissions, while expanding into a year-long effort with a series of online workshops / seminars and screenings, culminating with the annual onsite festival, allowing students to see their work on the big screen while meeting and networking industry professionals. Phoenix Productions, the Basie's community theatre company, presented five mainstage presentations ("School Of Rock", "West Side Story", "Elf: The Musical", "Kinky Boots"The Color Purple"), plus productions of Bat Boy: The Musical and Peter and the Starcatcher at The Vogel. The Color Purple, featuring Phoenix's first-ever all-Black cast, took home Outstanding Direction, Outstanding Lead Actress, Outstanding Supporting Actress, Outstanding Scenic Design and Outstanding Costume Design at the New Jersey Community Theatre Association's annual Perry Awards. FY2025 was a profitable year for the company, which continues to raise the bar on accessibility and inclusion for area actors, pit musicians and stagecraft personnel. Lastly, more than 7,000 students visited the Count Basie Center campus as part of our celebrated school show program, which welcomed students from 106 schools throughout the state - from as far away as Hudson, Somerset, Union counties, plus nearby Monmouth, Ocean and Middlesex. The Basie Center subsidized more than $36,000 in event tickets and $18,000 in bus transportation.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.
Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.
Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.
Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.
On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.
Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending June 2025.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since May 1973.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.
Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.
Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated October 21, 2026.
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