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    Rialto Theatre

    The Rialto is the oldest performance theater in Tucson. Its opening served notice that Tucson was now on the nation's cultural map. Constructed in 1919, the Rialto Theatre was the most elegant and luxurious playhouse west of the Mississippi. Its unique architecture made it a dramatic showcase for plays, films and Vaudeville. The stage was the largest in the western states. The Sistine Choir sang from it, Ginger Rogers danced on it and Tucson's first talking picture was shown from it.

    In 1948, the Rialto changed its name to the Paramount. For the next fifteen years the theater was Tucson's premiere movie house, but changes in economics and society caused the Paramount to close its doors for the last time. A decade later, the theater where once orchestras played overtures to discriminating audiences, had become a porno palace.

    Known then as the Cine Plaza, the theater cleaned up its act in 1978 with a switch to first-run Spanish-language films, but a fire in 1981 and a boiler explosion in 1984 bolted its doors again. Unused for a decade and in disrepair, the Rialto was scheduled for demolition.

    The Rialto Theatre was put back into service in 1995 by Jeb Schoonover and Paul Bear, who operated the Rialto until 2004 when it was purchased by the City of Tucson's Rio Nuevo project. The nonprofit Rialto Theatre Foundation re-opened the Theatre in April 2005 and now produces more than 130 concerts and other events annually. The Rialto Theatre has one of the best sound systems in the state and has been voted Best Indoor Venue five consecutive years by readers of the Tucson Weekly in its annual Best of Tucson issue.