As the sun descends in the western Arizona sky, the lights on Congress Street flicker and, just like that, downtown Tucson comes alive. In the past decade, new businesses—from restaurants and bars, to retail shops and art spaces—have cropped up along the busy thoroughfare, breathing new energy into this college town turned cultural landmark.
At the heart of the Tucson’s renaissance is the historic Rialto Theatre, which will celebrate its 100-year anniversary in 2020. Impressive, especially for a small community theater that was nearly demolished in 1984 when a boiler explosion caused serious damage to the building.
“The theater had been condemned, but was then purchased by some investors in the mid-1990s,” says Julie Ragland, development director of the Rialto Theatre Foundation. “They reopened it as a concert venue, but it wasn’t in the best shape and was in desperate need of improvements.”