Creators of Beijing's dazzling Athens send-off have more up their sleeves for Macau's opening ceremony
There's no doubt Beijing stole the show at the closing ceremony of the Athens Olympic Games. In just eight dazzling minutes, the world was given a taste of what to expect at the next Olympics in 2008. That stunning performance was produced by the Beijing BeiAo Grand Cultural and Sports Events Co. Ltd - so imagine what they can achieve in 60 minutes.
All will be revealed at Macau Stadium on Saturday, October 29, when BeiAo stages the opening ceremony of the fourth East Asian Games. The production will involve some 9,000 performers, 8,000 of them from local high schools and 1,000 professionals from China, to handle the heavy props and the more intricate movements.
They have been preparing for eight months, and the final stages of the rehearsals involve performing the movements in the 5,700 extravagant costumes. No one has followed the progress of the preparations closer than Paula Lei, the organising committee's cultural events project manager.
'What will stand out will be the effort of the students. It's really, really fantastic,' she says. 'Usually in Macau they think study is more important than leisure and outdoor activities, but this is a very good chance for the students to participate in something that you cannot learn from books. It's the first time Macau has ever hosted such a big multi-sports event, and the first time it has staged a cultural performance of this scale. The students know they will never have this chance again.'
There will be three sections to the opening ceremony: a pre-show to entertain the spectators as they enter the stadium; a ceremony to mark the official opening of the games, which will include the march past of over 2,600 athletes and officials from the nine countries and regions; and finally the cultural performance.