Public Theater

OSKAR EUSTIS IS NONPROFIT THEATER’S PANDEMIC PAY CHAMP (EXCLUSIVE)

August 10, 2022 by Philip Boroff

In 2020, a year in which theaters were dark for nine and a half months, Public Theater Artistic Director Oskar Eustis earned $1.15 million in pay and benefits, more than any other nonprofit theater leader in New York.

Eustis’ 10 percent jump in overall compensation — disclosed in the Public’s 2020-21 tax return filed with the New York Attorney General — runs counter to the company’s messaging about pandemic pay. In an April 2020 New York Times story about the cancellation of Shakespeare in the Park and planned staff furloughs, Michael Paulson reported that much of the remaining staff “will take up to a 25 percent pay cut. Eustis will take a 40 percent pay cut.”

The tax return, which details compensation for calendar year 2020, tells a different story. Eustis, one of the highest-profile figures in nonprofit theater since assuming leadership of the storied organization in 2005, was paid $901,000, up from $807,000 in 2019. Benefits and deferred pay were valued at an additional $255,000.Continue Reading

RIDING HIGH WITH ‘HAMILTON’ PROFITS, THEATER PLANS ‘PUBLIC STUDIOS’

October 7, 2019 by Philip Boroff

EXCLUSIVE: The Public Theater has earned tens of millions of dollars for its role developing Hamilton — and is spending as little of it as possible on two ambitious projects.

The venerable nonprofit is fundraising for a new rehearsal and audition space — dubbed Public Studios — that’s scheduled to open early next year across the street from its Astor Place headquarters. It’s also renovating the Delacorte Theater in Central Park, to be completed around 2022.Continue Reading

PUBLIC’S ‘HAMILTON’ RICHES COULD TOP $10 MILLION A YEAR

November 3, 2017 by Philip Boroff

EXCLUSIVE: The Public Theater could earn upwards of $10 million a year for helping to develop Hamilton: An American Musical. But don’t expect it to do anything flashy with the cash.

The plan for now is to plow money back into the institution — rather than bankrolling new shows on Broadway or making Public Theater tickets free year-round a la Shakespeare in the Park.

First up, according to two people familiar with the situation: an ambitious renovation to consolidate rehearsal space across the street, at 440 Lafayette, which will primarily replace facilities it rents around the city. And it’s setting aside reserves for capital expenses, operations and programming.

STING’S ‘LAST SHIP’ PREVIEW BUOYS PUBLIC THEATER COFFERS

March 18, 2016 by Philip Boroff

EXCLUSIVE: The Last Ship, a failure on Broadway, was a hit for the Public Theater .

In the fall of 2013, a year before the musical’s brief run at the Neil Simon Theatre, Sting played ten concerts of its songs at the downtown nonprofit, coinciding with the release of his album The Last Ship. According to the Public’s latest tax return, its benefit income after subtracting for direct expenses surged 60 percent to $3.2 million. That suggests a roughly million dollar gain in 2013-14 from the Sting engagement. (As in previous years, the Public also held a gala in Central Park.)

The Public paid $900,000 to Sting’s Steerpike Productions, according to the return. A theater spokeswoman said the star performed for free and the money covered rehearsal, performances, travel and lodging for his 14-piece band, including musical director Rob Mathes.

The concerts helped the Public increase net assets by 14 percent to $41.5 million — a preview of improving fortunes. The theater helped develop the play Eclipsed and the musicals Fun Home and Hamilton, all now on Broadway. Hamilton alone will likely yield many millions for the institution.