DETROIT PUBLIC THEATRE
World-class plays and programs with world-class writers, directors, actors, and designers in the heart of Midtown Detroit’s thriving cultural district.
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Professional Theatre Productions
Detroit Public Theatre produces world-class plays with world-class writers, directors, actors and designers in the heart of Midtowns thriving cultural district. Four to five productions each year are curated with a careful eye to contributing to the cultural landscape of Detroit and nurturing a diverse and passionate theatre-going audience. We bring Detroit bold, new voices in world premieres and Michigan premieres and edgy, contemporary musicals that are unlikely to travel through our great Broadway roadhouses. We nurture artists and audiences that are diverse in every way chronologically, ethnically, and socioeconomically. We believe that theatre, like music, has a profound ability to cross cultural and social boundaries. We believe that when we laugh and cry together in a darkened theatre, we are reminded of our shared humanity, and we can create a forum to hear new voices and share our own.
Shakespeare in Prison
Shakespeare in Prison empowers inmates through theatre exercises and Shakespearean text to think creatively, reflect on their pasts, gain insight into themselves and others, and develop crucial life skills to be used both in and out of prison.
There is an idea that only “great actors” can do Shakespeare “right,” and that is absolutely false. Anyone can perform Shakespeare, and everyone has the right to create art as part of being a self-aware and individual human being.
Many people who are incarcerated have been "beaten down" over time, made to feel worthless, labeled as being "bad," "criminals," or worse. Within the prison system, they most often go by their last names and identification numbers. Many incarcerated people have not had opportunities in their lives to develop confidence, self esteem and the ability to be an empowered individual.
Shakespeare in Prison helps to change all of that for its participants. Inmates gain skills such as the ability to speak confidently in front of an audience and see their reading skills improved, but, perhaps more importantly, they experience many things for the first time that most people take for granted:
They learn to work as a team toward a common goal;
They attain that goal;
They express their opinions, which are heard and valued;
They learn to trust the group enough to express deep emotion;
They find comradeship and sisterhood in a place where it is severely lacking;
They develop as leaders and learn to give constructive criticism, becoming able to argue a point without verbally attacking people with whom they disagree.
Working specifically with Shakespeare gives them an opportunity to take on what seems like an enormous challenge and prove to themselves and others in their lives that they are very capable of doing this seemingly impossible task.
With the development of these skills comes increased confidence in all areas of the participants' lives. Several of the women who completed the program and moved on did so with eagerness to try new things while incarcerated and with greater confidence in what they will be able to accomplish when they are released into the community.
More than 90% of incarcerated people will be released from prison. The development of all these skills helps participants constructively reintegrate back into society, making them less likely to re-offend. Those who remain in prison are able to utilize what they have learned not only for their own benefit, but to positively affect the community in which they live.
Detroit '67 in Detroit Schools
Detroit Public Theatre has been collaborating with Detroit Schools since our founding in 2015 and creating arts-integrated curricula for social studies and English classrooms using our plays as jumping off points for dialogue and deeper student engagement with subject matter. We have created a curriculum with Public School teachers for use in High School American History Classrooms that connects students more profoundly to their study of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960's through Dominique Morisseau's acclaimed play "Detroit '67" and we have brought thousands of students to see our productions, often through subsidized ticket programs. We have worked with Renaissance High School, Cass Technical High School, Detroit School of Arts, and with other students through the Matrix Community Center in Osborn.
Where we work
External reviews
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
We don’t have the right technology to collect and aggregate feedback efficiently, It is difficult to find the ongoing funding to support feedback collection, Staff find it hard to prioritize feedback collection and review due to lack of time
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
DETROIT PUBLIC THEATRE
Board of directorsas of 02/15/2024
David Jaffe
Sarah Clare Corporandy
Debbie Erb
Nina Essman
Susan Gordon
Noah Haidle
Felicia Molnar
Dominique Morisseau
Sarah Prues
Wendy Batiste-Johnson
Sarah Winkler
Sarah Clare Corporandy
David Jaffe
Sonya Mays
Allan Rothfeder
Peter Van Dyke
Jamie Kaye Walters
Courtney Burkett
Boyd White III
Christie Peck
Angelique Power
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? No -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
The organization's co-leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
Disability
Equity strategies
Last updated: 02/15/2024GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We use a vetting process to identify vendors and partners that share our commitment to race equity.
- We have a promotion process that anticipates and mitigates implicit and explicit biases about people of color serving in leadership positions.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.