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Now playing at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center: the Dance Alloy. The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. Quantum Theatre. The River City Brass Band.

More than 60 arts organizations from the Pittsburgh region get their own close-ups in a high-definition video installation commissioned by Dollar Bank.

"An Overture to the Arts," a montage of performance clips and still photographs, was unveiled Tuesday at Dollar Bank's Regional Gallery on the third floor of the Convention Center.

Groups as diverse as the Afro-American Music Institute, Pittsburgh Public Theater and Srishti Dances of India are given screen time in a series of panoramic 28- by 14-foot images that are flashed on opposing walls of the gallery.

This latest exhibit is intended to preview the arts scene for visitors to next week's inaugural National Performing Arts Convention.

"The hope is that people who come to the Convention Center will see Pittsburgh," says Joseph B. Smith, senior vice president of marketing for Dollar Bank.

As music plays on newly installed 6-foot, tube-shaped metal speakers overhead, a visitor can sit upon a large leather bench and watch a five-and-a-half minute assemblage that amounts to a video and photo album of the regional arts scene. An impressionist painting from the Carnegie Museum of Art flashes vivid green and lavender brush strokes across the wall, followed by a black-and-white shot of a jazz workshop at the Manchester Crafstmen's Guild. The Duquesne Tamburitzans become airbone in a moving video clip, followed by a still photograph of Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre in "Don Quixote."

"An Overture to the Arts" took approximately two months to assemble, says Lori Felker, multimedia production specialist for Dollar Bank. The first step was to begin contacting arts organizations in April, asking them to submit photographs. Some organizations were filmed during rehearsals or performance in high-definition video by Production Masters Inc. The Sextant Group designed the new sound system while Dymun + Company provided the overall design.

Each performing group or museum is identified in the lower lefthand section of its photo or clip, so that visitors know who they're seeing. Free brochures are available nearby that list each organization in the show.

"We want people to know what's here and then go to it," Felker says. "It's to bring conventions out into Pittsburgh when they come here."

The Regional Gallery is one of three galleries owned and operated by Dollar Bank at the Convention Center.

"An Overture to the Arts" runs through September. Apart from conventioneers, the public may view the exhibit, but only during special open houses.

Details: www.regionalshowcase.com.

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