The sixth year of Art on the Atlanta BeltLine performances came to a fantastic finale on October 10 & 11. With the Westside Trail closed for construction, we had to get creative with our performance venues, so on Saturday, October 10, we took our events to the Piedmont Park stage on the northeast hiking trail. This area north of Evelyn Street behind the Atlanta Botanical Garden is a venue we haven’t used for performances in several years, but offers a naturalistic backdrop to our art.
The stage was designed by Bryan Alcorn and Frank Fralick, the same artists that designed the stage at Allene Avenue for the 2013 & 2014 performances. The performers played to a crowd that came for the show but also many that passed by on the way to or from the Pride Festival in Piedmont Park. Fly on a Wall was the first group to take the stage, followed by Zoetic Dance.
Pete Peterson reprised his performance at Gordon White Park, followed by Crossover Movement Arts, whose peripatetic show used the trail and the banks of the creek. Mabu’s Ark Band and the Ghosts Project didn’t let a brief rain shower stop them from playing out the evening with jazz and a silent film screening.
On Sunday, October 11, we had our biggest lineup to the last day of 2016 performances. The Hillside Presbyterian Handbell Choir started the afternoon in Historic Fourth Ward Park, followed by a dance performance from me.you.we.us.them.
Zoetic Dance returned for a second performance, and Evin Galang hosted a swing dance lesson and interactive performance for the audience. Atlanta Music Project got the audience cheering, followed by a cerebral performance from Bent Frequency using bikes as musical instruments. The night ended with musical performances by Emily Cargill, Tray Dahl and the Jugtime Ragband, and Kebbi Williams and the Wolf Pack.
The performance art portion of Art on the Atlanta BeltLine may be over, but the exhibition continues through mid-November with more than 70 installations along the Eastside Trail! Download the exhibition brochure for a map and check out all of them!