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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Hartbeat Ensemble Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 061633100
CT · NTEE A65
FY ending 2023-09-30
June 13, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Rhoda Cerritelli, Executive Director / CEO ($59,333) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 319 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 61st percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Rhoda Cerritelli — reported title “Managing Director”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

319 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 319 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$718 total compensation of comparable organizations → $143,645 $59,333
$13,40510th
$34,95825th
$53,268Median
$69,48975th
$85,89190th
$59,333This org · 61st
p10$13,405
p25$34,958
p50$53,268
p75$69,489
p90$85,891
$59,333

Comparable organizations

Each figure is Form 990 Part VII columns D + F (reportable pay plus other compensation and benefits; column F may include amounts from related organizations), normalized to CT cost of living (BEA RPP, 2023) and to its filing year (CPI-U); the reported amount is on each linked 990.

OrganizationStateRevenueMatched titleComp
(reported)
Comp
(adjusted)
FY
The Inheiritance Project Ltd NY$466,527 Executive Dir. $74,750 $69,973 2024
Plan-b Theatre Company UT$467,893 Managing Dir $53,117 $56,318 2024
Sweet Jane Productions Inc NY$465,782 President & Chairman $57,077 $55,008 2023
Siudy Flamenco Dance Theatre Inc FL$468,461 Executive Dir. $44,790 $44,877 2023
New Federal Theatre Inc NY$464,790 Board Member/producing Artistic Dir. $70,015 $65,541 2024
Playful People Productions CA$463,684 Executive Dir. $12,557 $11,233 2024
Sieminski Theater Inc NJ$462,005 President & Ceo $61,550 $56,929 2024
The Hatch Inc VT$472,296 Executive Director $80,840 $84,292 2024
Beaumont Community Players Inc TX$459,825 Executive Dir $75,000 $77,720 2024
Austin Scottish Rite Community And TX$457,853 Executive Dir. $58,200 $60,310 2024
Portland Revels OR$457,516 Executive Director $60,000 $56,234 2025
Portland Experimental Theatre Ensemble OR$457,269 Board Member $43,250 $41,608 2024
Saguaro City Music Theatre AZ$457,185 Managing Director $3,000 $2,989 2024
Exodus Ensemble NM$456,258 Executive Di $38,595 $44,273 2023
The Elm Shakespeare Company CT$455,494 Producing Artistic Directo $79,711 $77,424 2024
Hallwalls Inc NY$454,638 Executive Dir. $50,500 $47,273 2024
Krymov Lab Inc NY$480,680 Managing Director $26,486 $24,794 2024
Gingold Theatrical Group NY$452,801 Artistic Dir. $57,200 $53,545 2024
Rome Little Theatre Inc GA$481,871 Executive Director $51,691 $53,842 2024
Balanced Almond Inc TX$451,494 President $40,134 $41,590 2024
Chandler Youth Theatre AZ$451,424 Director $50,000 $49,815 2024
White Bird Productions Inc NY$450,835 President $60,000 $57,825 2023
Six Points Theater MN$483,858 Producing Artistic Dir $83,875 $85,857 2024
Vermont Stage Company VT$485,273 Executive Di $60,000 $62,562 2024
Halifax Repertory Theatre FL$485,446 President $22,500 $21,332 2025

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to CT cost of living and 2023 dollars. Click any organization to verify the figure on ProPublica.

Methodology

Comparable organizations were drawn from electronically filed IRS Form 990 returns and matched on sector (NTEE code), budget (a size-adaptive revenue band that tightens as the organization grows), and geography (same-state first, broadening only when too few peers qualify); every organization within the band forms the peer set. To compare fairly across regions and years, peer compensation is normalized to CT cost of living (BEA Regional Price Parities, 2023) and to the subject's filing year (CPI-U). The figure benchmarked is Form 990 Part VII, Section A, columns D + F — reportable pay plus other compensation, benefits, and deferred amounts (column F may include amounts from related organizations) — with the chief executive matched by role. Related-organization amounts (column E) and institutional trustees are excluded. Full methodology: peerbasis.org/methodology.

Sample, role match & sensitivity

Sensitivity — the subject's percentile under alternative compensation definitions:

BasisSubject percentile
Total compensation (D + F), cost-of-living + inflation adjusted — the PeerBasis default61st
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)59th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted42nd
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted60th

If the percentile moves materially across these definitions, the result is sensitive to methodology choices, and the board should weigh which basis best fits its facts.

Rebuttable presumption of reasonableness · 26 CFR 53.4958-6

Compensation paid by a tax-exempt organization is presumed reasonable — shifting the burden to the IRS — when three requirements are met. This report supplies the comparability data for the second. The board should record the following in its minutes concurrently with its decision:

Draft board minutes — executive compensation

  1. The compensation of the Executive Director / CEO (Rhoda Cerritelli) was approved in advance by [the Board / Compensation Committee], composed of members with no conflict of interest with respect to the arrangement.
  2. Prior to its determination, the authorized body obtained and relied upon appropriate comparability data, namely the PeerBasis Compensation Comparability Determination dated June 13, 2026, comparing compensation against 319 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (A65), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $59,333 is reasonable (approximately the 61st percentile of comparable organizations) and documented the basis for this determination concurrently, on [date], by a vote of [__ for / __ against].

Sources: IRS Form 990 e-file data (apps.irs.gov); IRS Business Master File (NTEE classification). Every figure traces to an original public filing — click any organization above to verify it on ProPublica. PeerBasis is a service of Prismind Analytics; its methodology is published, was commissioned for independent adversarial review, and discloses its own limitations. This report is comparability data to support a board's good-faith determination under IRC 4958; it is not legal or tax advice. Generated by PeerBasis on June 13, 2026.