curtain raiser


noun

a short play preceding a main play.
any preliminary event or performance.

Origin of curtain raiser

First recorded in 1885–90

Idioms and Phrases with curtain raiser

curtain raiser

Preliminary event, as in This limited attack on the chairman is just a curtain raiser for the concerted effort to oust him. This term literally refers to a short play or skit presented before the main theatrical production. It began to be transferred to other preliminaries about 1940.