If it’s Friday night of Atlanta Pride Weekend, you can count on one thing—a packed house at the Georgia Aquarium for the Official Atlanta Pride Kick Off Party. The 2015 edition of Atlanta Pride didn’t disappoint as thousands of people from across the city and the country flocked to the award-winning Atlanta landmark.

The evening kicked off early with a VIP party in the Ocean’s Ballroom, featuring appearances by the grand marshals from the Pride parade. Roughly 1,700 of the estimated 3,000-strong crowd then took in the Georgia Aquarium’s popular Dolphin Tales show.

Meanwhile, attendees enjoyed beats from DJ Brandon Moses and VJ Diablo Rojo throughout the night. After that it was either home for the night or on to the next event to keep the party going, all in preparation for a big Saturday and Sunday at Atlanta Pride 2015.

Check out our photo gallery below for scenes from the big opening night party!

Attendees at the first Atlanta Downtown Master Plan meeting offer their suggestions on transportation needs.
GSU Professor Dr. Joseph Hacker discussed areas of focus for Downtown’s transportation needs.
Inside the Operation Shield Video Integration Center (Courtesy CBS46)
(Pictured L – R): C.T. Martin, Atlanta City Council; Russell Stokes, President and CEO, GE Energy Connections; Paul Bowers, Chairman, President and CEO, Georgia Power; Michael Julian Bond, Atlanta City Council; Chris M. Carlos; Chief George Turner; Keisha Lance Bottoms, Atlanta City Council; Mayor Kasim Reed; Ivory Young, Atlanta City Council; Andre Dickens, Atlanta City Council; Frank Fernandez, Vice President of Community Development, The Arthur M. Blank Foundation; Dave Wilkinson, President and CEO, Atlanta Police Foundation; Jarvis Davis, At-Promise Youth
A cover of a “Public/Private Partnerships for Local Government,” a book by Oliver Porter, the man who pioneered Sandy Springs’ outsourcing model.
Carl Janes at The Secret Spot in East Atlanta Village. (Photos by Isadora Pennington)
The colorful exterior of The Secret Spot.
Old globes are just one of the many art installations inside The Secret Spot.
Janes has an affinity for American iconography.
A rendering of the Briarcliff Mansion.
Harry Norman, Realtor’s Bowl-A-Thon.
Young Will (Gabe Bowles), Edward Bloom (Travis Smith) and The Girl in the Water (Caroline Arapoglou).