Canadian Stage is a 1-star charity. It is not financially transparent and has a B results reporting grade which is average. Its overhead spending is 48% which is not within Ci’s reasonable range. Its donor endowments are more than its net reserve funds. Read Ci’s report before donating.

Founded in 1970, Canadian Stage (CS) is a contemporary performing arts organization in Toronto. It showcases theatre, dance, and musical performances by local artists. Its productions are located at three venues: the High Park Amphitheatre, the Bluma Appel Theatre, and the Marilyn and Charles Baillie Theatre. In the fiscal year ending June 2024 (F2024), CS spent a total of $6.2m on its programs.

CS hosted nine major theatre productions in F2024: one at the High Park Amphitheatre, four at the Bluma Appel Theatre, and four at the Marilyn and Charles Baillie Theatre. In F2024, it had a 39% growth in season subscriptions year-over-year.

Since its foundation, CS has hired over 5,000 artists and provided services to over 4,900,000 audience members. The charity has also performed 500 shows since being founded.

Canadian Stage is not financially transparent. Ci received its audited financial statements from the CRA Charities Directorate. CS’s audited financial statements follow activity-based costing, a financial reporting best practice. This means its expenses are clearly defined between program, administrative and fundraising costs.

CS received $2.0m in donations in F2024, which is 26% of total revenue. In F2024, it received $2.2m in government funding, which is 30% of total revenue. In F2024, CS earned $2.1m from fees for its services, which is 28% of revenue. It spent $6.2m on its programs in F2024, which is 83% of revenue. CS recorded a deficit of $625k in F2024.

CS spent $781k on fundraising costs, which is 33% of donations. It spent $1.1m on administrative costs, which is 15% of revenue. CS has total overhead spending of 48%. For every dollar donated to CS, 52 cents are available to go to the cause. This is not within Ci’s reasonable range of 65-95.

CS has $249k in reserve funds (cash and investments). It has donor endowments of $2.0m. CS’s program cost coverage ratio is negative because its donor-endowed funds are larger than its net funding reserves. Excluding donor-endowed funds, its reserve funds can cover 4% or just under one month of its annual program costs, which is within Ci’s reasonable range.

This report is an update that has been sent to Canadian Stage for review. Changes and edits may be forthcoming. Updated on June 12, 2025, by Leah DeFrancesco.