Rialto Theater

This place gets five thumbs up. I want to grow more thumbs, and then high-​five it right now, a full two nights after visiting and from 200 miles away. Not every place makes me want to do such a weird thing, y’all. If you’re in the area, visit. The old fashioned hospitality and warm welcome will make you glad you did. Plus, it’s just a really cute theater: tables in the front, theater seating in the middle, and comfy sofas and chairs in the back. Reasonably priced tickets and drinks for the 140 maximum allotment of lucky patrons who get to see the shows. Nice, friendly staff.
For my mom’s birthday this past weekend, we went to see the «Always… Patsy Cline» production showing at this small charmer. I was initially impressed by the ticket purchasing experience: painless. Honestly, after living in NYC and seeing shows there, I was a little blown away by the fact that there was no administrative fee for the online purchase. When was the last time you bought two $ 15 tickets and paid $ 30? I know that the UT Performing Arts Center here in Austin is now up to a $ 9 fee — per ticket. This was like a breath of fresh sea air from the Coastal Bend. I once paid more in fees for a ticket than the actual printed price of the thing, and $ 23 in fees was becoming totally NY normalized. Anyway, moral of the story: go here, not there.
Back to the theater. Our party of four was the very last to arrive, but the ushers at the back of the theater went out of their way to accommodate us. Mom and her date were escorted to two seats together up front, even though the show had already started. D. and I decided to stand in the back rather than separate, and posted near a variety of couches, futons, recliners and benches. Within seconds, we were offered a bench to sit on that had been dragged out into the aisle by one of the staff. It was really notable how they really went above and beyond to make us feel welcome. At the end of the night, one of the ushers even hugged us goodbye.
The show was also worthwhile; what we saw was a two woman production with loads of singing, accompanied by live music. Rialto was celebrating its 75^th anniversary of community theater, and one of the bartenders, in settling a dollar bet, told us that bigger productions are in the works. In order to make that a /​reality/​at /​Rialto/​, though, they need y’all to go support their work. Exchange your cash in digestible $ 15 increments for actresses bringing joy into being through song, access to inviting plush couches, and ART. The show must go on, and I’m heartened that it can do in such a darling space.
Rialto Theater, I’m giving you a five thumbs salute from Austin, and the next time I go home to visit family, I’ll be in touch.