irs program accomplishments · form 990 part iii · fy2023
What they reported doing
- #1 primary $0NATIONAL SAWDUST PRODUCED AND HOSTED A DYNAMIC SLATE OF PERFORMANCES, FESTIVALS, AND PUBLIC PROGRAMS DURING SEASON 9. WE LAUNCHED OPERA EVOLVED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE METROPOLITAN OPERA, CREATING SPACE FOR COMPOSERS AND ARTISTS TO EXPLORE HOW OPERA IS TRANSFORMING TODAY. NATIONALSAWDUST+ PRESENTED CATIE AND THE ROBOT, A DURATIONAL DANCE DUET BETWEEN CHOREOGRAPHER/ENGINEER CATIE CUAN AND AN INDUSTRIAL ROBOT ARM, UNFOLDING OVER AN EIGHT-HOUR AMERICAN WORKDAY. EXPERIMENTAL AND GENRE-DEFYING WORKS LIKE HESS IS MORE: APOLLONIAN CIRCLES BLURRED BOUNDARIES BETWEEN MUSIC, THEATER, AND ART INSTALLATION, WHILE GRAMMY MUSEUM COLLABORATIONS BROUGHT MAJOR ARTISTS LIKE JON BATISTE, STROMAE, RHIANNON GIDDENS, AND NICK CAVE TO OUR STAGE, EXPANDING OUR REACH AND AUDIENCE DIVERSITY.
- #2 $0OUR SEASON 9 MENTORSHIP PROGRAMS CONTINUED TO SUPPORT EMERGING AND ESTABLISHED ARTISTS ALIKE, GROUNDED IN EQUITY AND INNOVATION. STUDENT COLAB, OUR FLAGSHIP EDUCATION INITIATIVE WITH EL PUENTE, ENGAGED MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS IN CREATING AND PERFORMING ORIGINAL MUSIC, WITH PERFORMANCES ACROSS COMMUNITY VENUES. THE BLUEPRINT FELLOWS PROJECT, IN COLLABORATION WITH THE JUILLIARD SCHOOL, GUIDED EMERGING COMPOSERS THROUGH THE PROCESS OF BUILDING SUSTAINABLE ARTISTIC CAREERS. THE HILDEGARD COMMISSION OFFERED A $5K COMMISSION, MENTORSHIP, AND RECORDING SUPPORT TO COMPOSERS WHO ARE WOMEN AND OTHER MARGINALIZED GENDERS. THE TOULMIN FELLOWSHIP, IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE CENTER FOR BALLET AND THE ARTS AT NYU, PROVIDED SUPPORT FOR COMPOSERS AND CHOREOGRAPHERS DEVELOPING NEW INTERDISCIPLINARY WORK. ALL PROGRAMS FEATURED MENTORSHIP FROM LEADERS SUCH AS KAMILAH FORBES, DU YUN, ALICIA ADAMS, ANGLICA NEGRN, AND LIZ LERMAN.
named programs · 6 · from sources
What they call their work
Artist Residency Program
Provides composers and musicians with creative time, financial support, mentorship, and resources to develop new interdisciplinary work, continuing through in-person and digital formats during the pandemic.
Blueprint Fellows Project
Collaborative program with The Juilliard School guiding emerging composers in building sustainable artistic careers through mentorship and professional development.
Hildegard Commission
Offers a $5,000 commission, mentorship, and recording support to composers who are women and other marginalized genders, culminating in premieres by the National Sawdust ensemble.
NationalSawdust+
Digital platform presenting durational performances, experimental works, and public conversations, expanding access during and beyond the pandemic.
Student Colab
Flagship education initiative in partnership with El Puente that engages middle and high school students in creating and performing original music across community venues.
Toulmin Fellowship
Partnership with the Center for Ballet and the Arts at NYU to support collaborative, interdisciplinary work between composers and choreographers through creative and financial support.
activities · 9 groups
What they do
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Creative Arts Therapy Programs 1 activity
- Facilitating trauma-informed arts programming for veteransHosted the "Moral Injuries of War" workshop on Memorial Day, using storytelling, music, and dance to support veterans in processing trauma.
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Artist Support Grants 1 activity
- Funding commissions for underrepresented composersFunds $5,000 commissions, mentorship, and recording support for composers who are women and other marginalized genders through the Hildegard Commission.
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Live Music Performances & Concerts 1 activity
- Hosting major artists and cross-sector collaborationsHosts prominent artists such as Jon Batiste, Stromae, Rhiannon Giddens, and Nick Cave through partnerships with organizations like the Grammy Museum to expand audience reach and diversity.
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Artist Residencies and Studio Programs 1 activity
- Operating artist residency programRuns an artist residency program that provides creative time, peer learning, mentorship, and resources for composers and musicians to develop new work; maintained through the pandemic with eleven resident artists creating collaborative digital works.
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Original Dance Performance Production 1 activity
- Presenting innovative performance worksPresents experimental and interdisciplinary performance works such as "Catie and the Robot," a durational dance collaboration between choreographer Catie Cuan and an industrial robot arm.
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Original Music-Theater and Opera Production 1 activity
- Producing and hosting performances, festivals, and public programsProduces and hosts performances, festivals, and public programs, including collaborations with institutions like the Metropolitan Opera and Onassis Foundation; examples include Season 9's Opera Evolved and Season 8's "Archive of Desire" festival.
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Music Education and Training Programs 1 activity
- Providing youth music education and creative developmentEngages middle and high school students in creating and performing original music through Student Colab, its flagship education program in partnership with El Puente.
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Professional Audio/Video Production Services 1 activity
- Supporting artists' digital production capabilitiesProvided professional coaching and audiovisual equipment support to 28 artist ensembles to help them create and stream film-based performances during the Digital Discovery Festival.
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Uncategorized 2 activities
- Conducting master classes and public education programsHosted master classes on topics including racial justice and the arts, reaching 30,000 viewers.
- Delivering digital and virtual arts eventsReached over 8,100 viewers through digital events during the pandemic, exceeding in-person capacity by more than eightfold.
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financials · form 990 · fy2023
revenue
Total revenue$3.89M
Contributions & grants$2.61M67%
Program service revenue$1.02M26%
Investment income$00%
Other revenue$267K
expenses
Total expenses$4.38M
Program expenses73%
Admin / overhead20%
Fundraising6%
Salaries & benefits$1.85M
Grants paid out$0
Largest expense lineCompensation
balance sheet
Total assets$22.69M
Cash$145K
Investments$0
Liabilities$11.91M
Net assets$10.78M
Liquid reserves0.4 mo
5 years on record · 2019–2023 · YoY revenue -67.5%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2023
Who runs it
paid leadership · 4
| Name | Title | Hours/wk | Compensation |
|---|---|---|---|
| PAOLA PRESTINI | DIRECTOR-ARTISTIC DIRECTOR | 40 | $140K |
| KYLE DOLAN | OFFICER/FINANCE AND FACILI | 40 | $112K |
| KIM CHAN | OFFICER/ADVANCEMENT | 40 | $87K |
| ELENA PARK | DIRECTOR/CURATOR | 1 | $18K |
board members · 21
- ALEXANDRA FENWICK-MOORE — DIRECTOR
- CHARLES LETOURNEAU — DIRECTOR
- CHINWE ESIMAI — DIRECTOR
- CHRISTOPHER WHITMAN — DIRECTOR
- D KEVIN DOLAN — DIRECTOR/CHAIR
- DANIEL BREEN — DIRECTOR
- DAVID STEIN — DIRECTOR
- ELIZABETH MADIGAN JOST — DIRECTOR
- EMMANUEL MORLET — DIRECTOR
- FABIEN MOREAU — DIRECTOR
- HELEN LITTLE — DIRECTOR
- JILL STEINBERG — DIRECTOR/PRESIDENT
- KAREN WONG — DIRECTOR
- KATHIE CHOI — DIRECTOR
- LAWRENCE ZLATKIN — DIRECTOR
- PETER ZUSPAN — DIRECTOR/SECRETARY
- RICK D'AVINO — DIRECTOR/VICE PRESIDENT
- SARAH JOHNSON — DIRECTOR
- SUE HERMANN — DIRECTOR
- TERESA TORO — DIRECTOR
- XIAO MA — DIRECTOR
relationships · 6
Who they work with
- Center for Ballet and the Arts at NYU Partner — Partners on the Toulmin Fellowship to support interdisciplinary collaboration between composers and choreographers.
- El Puente Partner — Collaborates on Student Colab, an education initiative engaging youth in original music creation and performance.
- Grammy Museum Partner — Collaborates to bring major artists to National Sawdust’s stage, expanding audience reach and diversity.
- Metropolitan Opera Partner — Collaborated on the launch of Opera Evolved to explore contemporary opera transformation.
- Onassis Foundation Partner — Partnered on the "Archive of Desire" festival curated by National Sawdust’s artistic director.
- The Juilliard School Partner — Collaborates on the Blueprint Fellows Project to guide emerging composers in building sustainable artistic careers.
strategies · 2
How they approach the work
Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.
- Artist-Centered Incubationmethodology: artist-centered incubationBy providing a supportive venue and critical resources, the organization enables composers and musicians across genres to innovate and share new work, fostering artistic growth because structured support lowers barriers to creative risk-taking.
- Peer-Learning Network for Artistsmethodology: peer-learning networkBy fostering peer-to-peer creative connections, the organization enhances artistic development because collaborative exchange among practitioners generates shared learning and inspires innovation.