When Angelique Kidjo won a Grammy Award in February, the director of Georgia State University's Rialto Center for the Arts knew it was a mixed blessing. With Kidjo scheduled to appear in March as part of the center's 2007-08 season series, it would help promote the Rialto for the Benin-born star's 'Djin Djin' album to be named the best contemporary world music release of the year.
But there is a slight drawback to Kidjo's growing acclaim, said Leslie Gordon, director of the 833-seat performing arts venue in downtown Atlanta.
 Photos: Rialto Center for the Arts, Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre; illustration by BILL BOYKINS/Staff |
 Rialto Center for the Arts |
| In January, Buenos Aires Tango troupe, Estampas Porteñas, performed 'Tango Fire' at the Rialto Center of the Arts. |
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| Andy Palacio |
"We probably won't be able to afford her again, since she won the Grammy," Gordon said.
"Where Atlanta Meets the World," the name of the Rialto's season this year, continues a focus on bringing talent from around the globe. It was at the Rialto where the Buena Vista Social Club first played its Afro-Cuban rhythms for Atlanta audiences before success and its own Grammy resulted in bookings at larger venues.
This year the Rialto series includes flamenco dancers from Spain; the Garifuna Collective, a group of musicians from Belize, Guatemala and Honduras; and pianist Arturo O'Farrill and his Afro-Cuban Big Band.
"We're here to inspire diverse audiences," Gordon said. "We believe we are building bridges to other cultures through the arts."
Other metro Atlanta venues also present international performing artists.
The fledgling Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre showcased Chinese classical dancers in January and is hosting the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra's Discover Next Generation Concerts to introduce children to music from other countries.
"It's a wonderful exposure to different people and cultures," said Michael Taormina, the venue's managing director.
During four sold-out shows in February, American Symphony Orchestra League conducting fellow Mei-Ann Chen took schoolchildren on a musical journey around the world, demonstrating elements of music that create a sound that is unique to individual cultures.
Taormina said that his venue is still contemplating what kind of performance mix it will host, but he expects the programs will feature a diverse group of artists that appeal to various audiences.
"We know there is a large Latino audience out there and we hope to draw from that," Taormina said. "We also hope to be able to work with the National Black Arts Festival."
While the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre and other venues in metro Atlanta reach out to performers who attract a diversifying population, the Rialto variety and reach is hard to match. That's partially because the venue has been focusing on a global mix since it opened in a former movie house in 1996. It's also a result of the Rialto's connection to one of Georgia's largest, most diverse universities. Georgia State students hail from about 150 countries.
"We have found our audiences to be very curious," said the Rialto's Gordon. "They tend to read a lot; they probably listen to National Public Radio, and we have a lot of people who are teachers."
That curiosity is fed by programming the Rialto coordinates with its cultural offerings.
Before each show a short presentation introduces the audience to the work, Gordan said. So when the Whirling Dervishes of Turkey performed the ritual dance of Sufism last fall, the uninitiated learned that the dance is filled with spiritual symbolism.
"It was an experience, part of a meditative evening," Gordon said.
The educational offerings get even more extensive for some performances Gordon said. Such was the case for the Garifuna Collective, which included a three-day conference on the culture of the musicians, who are descendants of slaves from Belize and Honduras.
Gordon said the Rialto's global lineup isn't just unique for Atlanta, but also for the Southeast.
Many of the acts performing at the Rialto travel a small circuit.
"We've really made a niche for ourselves," she said.
The Rialto's season is winding down, although performances will continue through rentals of the venue.
Soon Gordon will scan the globe looking for inspiration to fill next year's calendar. She is already casting an eye toward Asia, the Celtic countries, South Africa and Spain.
The broad spectrum of musical choices brings in an equally broad cross-section of people from metro Atlanta, Gordon said.
And both performers and audiences seem to feed off the unusual blend.
"People love to come here, because of the diverse mix," Gordon said. "They get to mix with people they never encounter in everyday life."
RIALTO CENTER FOR THE ARTS PERFORMANCES
• JIMMY HEATH, jazz saxophone legend with the Georgia State University Jazz Band, April 11, 8 p.m.
• A TRIBUTE TO ANDY PALACIO, featuring the Garifuna Collective and Umalali, guest artists: Aurelio Martinez and Adrian Martinez, Afro-Caribbean soul, April 19, 8 p.m.
• MASTERS OF PERCUSSION FEATURING ZAKIR HUSSAIN, May 3, 8 p.m.
• ARTURO O'FARRILL AFRO-LATIN JAZZ BIG BAND, May 17, 8 p.m.
For more information, call 404-413-9849 or go to www.rialtocenter.org.
COBB ENERGY PERFORMING ARTS CENTRE PERFORMANCES
• MY LITTLE PONY LIVE! April 11, 7:30 p.m.; April 12, 10:30 a.m. and 2 p.m.; April 13, 1 and 4:30 p.m.
• THE ATLANTA OPERA: "MARRIAGE OF FIGARO" April 26, 8 p.m.; April 29, 7:30 p.m.; May 2, 8 p.m.; May 4, 3 p.m.
• THE SWELL SEASON, May 13, 8 p.m.
• JOHN PRINE, May 17, 8 p.m.
• 2008 VIETNAMESE VIDEO MUSIC AWARDS, May 18, 6 p.m.
• CLARK SISTERS, June 14, 7 p.m.
For more information, call 770-916-2800 or go to www.cobbenergycentre.com.