The Rialto Center for the Arts: The Show Must Go On

For over a century, the Rialto Center for the Arts at Georgia State University has been a beacon for the arts in Downtown Atlanta. The Rialto has had many lives — as a vaudeville house, a movie theater and today as a performing arts center presenting world-class, International artists. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and social unrest, the Rialto had to pivot to find new ways to engage our audiences because the show must go on. It was necessary to expand beyond the confines of our building and delve completely into the world of virtual performances.

Joe Alterman

During Georgia's shelter-in-place orders, the Rialto introduced Rialto Replays which were broadcast on our social media platforms every Wednesday, featuring full-length Rialto Series performances archived by GSUTV including Lisa Fischer, Off the EDGE Dance Festival, and The Nile Project. In an effort to offer hope and support to the Atlanta community during these extraordinary times and to showcase local and emerging artists, we launched the Rialto Homegrown Artists Series. Our Homegrown Artists Series presents a variety of free, short, virtual performances, every other Thursday at noon, from the homes of local artists. Our monthly lunch-and-learn series, Feed Your Senses, now features livestream performances.Connecting with partners in Atlanta and beyond, we recently partnered with Russell Gunn and the Blue Note New York to present "Live at theRialto" Livestream featuring Russell Gunn and the Royal Krunk Jazz Orkestra broadcast from the Rialto on Facebook and Instagram. As a result the Rialto has reached over 30,500 through virtual performances —more than twice our live show reach each season. Our virtual performances may be viewed on demand on our website's Rialto Performance Archives page.

Alex Gordon

While we are thrilled to offer virtual performances and reach new audiences, we continue to explore and implement ways to safely bring audiences back to the Rialto for the high caliber performances they expect. As we implement measures to ensure the health and safety of our patrons, we stand ready to welcome you to the Rialto. Until then, join us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @RiatoCenter. The show goes on!

Tino Garrido

Nerdkween Photo by Monica Arrington