curtain-raiser

• curtain raiser

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curtain-raiser (plural curtain-raisers)

1. (performing arts) In a theater, an initial play, musical performance, etc which precedes the main performance.
   • 1910, Edith Wharton, “The Bolted Door”, in Tales of Men and Ghosts:

     [H]e had tried all kinds: comedy, tragedy, prose and verse, the light curtain-raiser, the short sharp drama, the bourgeoisrealistic and the lyrical-romantic.

   • 2014 February 20, Brian Seibert, “Dance: Next Step for Force in Ballet”, in New York Times, retrieved 24 August 2014:

     “Capricious Maneuvers,” the eight-minute romp of a curtain raiser that Mr. Peck made for City Ballet’s 2013 Fall Gala, was fun.

2. (idiomatic, by extension) A prelude or introduction to an activity or thing.
   • 1901, Harold MacGrath, chapter 7, in The Puppet Crown:

     It is my opinion that your part in the affair is only a curtain-raiser to graver things.

   • 2008 September 11, Virginia Lopez, “Russia's Venezuela Foray: Tit for Tat”, in Time, retrieved 24 August 2014:

     But the first foray by Russian strategic bombers into the Western hemisphere since the Cold War is simply the curtain raiser for joint naval maneuvers that will bring Russian warships into Venezuelan waters in November.

   • 2024 July 25, Angelique Chrisafis, “Paris prepares for Olympics opening ceremony spectacle along River Seine”, in The Guardian‎, →ISSN:

     When the Paris Olympics opening ceremony begins on Friday night, it will be the first time the theatrical curtain-raiser for the world’s biggest sporting event has taken place outside a stadium.

• (performing arts): warm-up act
• (prelude or introduction): preamble, prologue

• curtain-raise

• “curtain-raiser”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.