BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — The curtains are up for more than a dozen shows in Buffalo. The city's theater season kicked off Friday night with the 38th annual Curtain Up!
The all night event has three parts. Act I was a gala dinner, Act II was the shows, and Act III was a free street party filled with live music, food trucks, and drinks.
Lisa Ludwig, President of the Theatre District Association, said the night is always a hit.
"Nobody like Buffalo kicks off a theater season like we do," she said.
Opening night shows included West Side Story, Hairspray, and Catch-22 among others. Mara Manus, the Executive Director of the New York State Council on the Arts said the theater community is essential to Buffalo.
"All 22 theaters here, which are going to be presenting hundreds of shows this season, are critical to the economic health of the area as well as providing a space for artists to thrive," she said.
Mean Girls had it's dress rehearsal Friday night. The show's creator Tina Fey was spotted in Buffalo, ordering pancakes at Swan Street Diner.
Ludwig has this line of advice for people as the theater season gets underway.
"Go see a different production that they haven't seen before and explore everything Buffalo has to offer in the theater," she said.
