Minnesota Shakespeare Theater
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
Points to look into
- It owes more than it owns.
These come from the organization's own tax return. There may be a good explanation; ask the charity.
What it says it does
Shakespearean Youth Theatre's mission is to inspire, empower and challenge young people to embody great works and create groundbreaking theatre through education, performance and ensemble-based collaboration.
- Income
- $224,439
- Spending
- $212,673
- Spent on programs
- 88%
- Reserves
- -9.3 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- government grants, 51%
- Employees
- 2
- Volunteers
- 100
- Highest pay
- $37,653, artistic director
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
Weak: 45 out of 100. Higher than 16% of charities in its peer group (arts and culture, under $250k).
Reserves
0 of 35Spendable reserves are negative: it owes or has committed more than it holds.
Debt
0 of 20It owes 268% of what it owns.
Living within its means
15 of 15Income exceeded spending by 5% of income.
Income trend
15 of 15Income rose 45% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1588% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 0 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
Fair: 56 out of 100. Higher than 42% of charities in its peer group (arts and culture, under $250k).
Independent board
18 of 253 of 4 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
0 of 15Reports no written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
0 of 8Reports no written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
0 of 7Reports no 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.
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 (3)
- $174,524 spent. Ensemble Performance Programs: An intensive program for young artists. Students ages 12 - 19 work with a team of professional teaching artists to explore Shakespeare's language, develop foundational acting techniques, build an artistic ensemble, and present full productions of Shakespeare plays to their community. SYT offers the Ensemble Performance program three times each year. This year, 60 students worked with 15 professional teaching artists representing a wide range of specialties from speaking classical language and verse to stage combat for over 1000 contact hours. 1400 members of the public attended performances of MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING, THE TEMPEST and THE WINTERS TALE in Saint Paul and Minneapolis, MN.
- $7,555 spent. Classes, Camps, and Workshops: SYT offers a wide range of one day, one week, and multi-week workshops, camps and classes for students ages 7-19 both year round and during the summer. Scaffolded cover Shakespearean text and language, presenting and performing onstage, voice and speech, fundamentals of acting, and storytelling. Students begin as young as 7 and progress through a sequence of courses as they develop confidence and skill.
- $4,200 spent. The Dream Project Immersive Online Shakespeare Platform: Presentations of Shakespeare radio plays, performed by actors ages 12 - 19 and presented to the public for free alongside educational materials and videos related to each play. 30 student actor participants and thousands of audience members worldwide. The Dream Project may be accessed at dream.sytmn.org
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 November 6, 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 2016.
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 November 4, 2026.
Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.