Athensfan

I sort of see what you are after, but I respectfully disagree. As I wrote elsewhere, I thought the Marie Antoinette section was one of the most successful. For one thing, backdrops are functional and necessary. In this case it really set off the performance. But I also disagree that the building was only a backdrop. It was taken over completely with Marie Antoinettes in the windows. Plus they built custom balcony platforms for the musicians. To me, that's really using the architecture. The light colored stone perfectly set off the red streamers and the ship. I'm really not sure what more you could ask from that segment. Personally, I wouldn't have been interested in an architectural tour of Paris (well, I WOULD, but in in an opening ceremony). I liked Paris as scenery, but I wish the artistic portions had matched it's scale and grandeur.

My detailed analysis: I think using the Seine was inspired. A signature gesture. Wonderful for the athletes and unforgettable. They got through the logistical challenges, but there was a lot of awkward dead time. This was probably unavoidable due to the complexity, but pacing was definitely the biggest problem for this ceremony. Very disjointed, a lot of waiting, no momentum. The quality of the entertainment portions was fragmented and uneven. Some parts were terrific, some parts came off as cheap. The Gojira segment with the Marie Antoinettes and fire and streamers was an absolute highlight for me. It worked because there was a strong idea communicated clearly on a grand scale that was well lighted. By contrast, other segments were just too small to feel “Olympic.” And in cloudy daylight, they didn’t pack much theatrical punch. The can-can was obviously under rehearsed and was a big miss. But even the Lady Gaga staging just wasn’t big enough to pack a punch. The literary ménage a trois fell flat for me. Not sexy or romantic. Blah. By the time we got to the sports section it was raining too hard for them to do much and again the scale was small. The fashion show was only remarkable for its strong statement of inclusion, but the clothes and the choreography were a hot mess. Again the scale wasn’t big enough to impress. I loved the idea of the escaped artwork peering out of the river to watch the athletes, but the story wasn’t told clearly enough and the faces in the River weren’t lit well enough. Many of the effects were strong. Loved the early smoke effect. Fountains were joyful. Lasers were next level. And, overall, I thought the musical direction was strong. The mysterious figure that was sort of a cross between Joan of Arc and the Phantom of the Opera wearing a fencing mask did nothing for me. “Euro-weird.” And there was no payoff with a reveal of that person’s identity. The horse galloping on the water was cool for about a minute, but when it was still galloping 15 minutes later (in the live broadcast) I became bored and impatient. Bringing in the Olympic flag like folded laundry felt woefully anti-climactic. Plus, they raised it upside down. Fortunately it was so wet that the flag hung straight down and was hard to tell. I liked expanding the torchbearers beyond the host nation and I thought the idea of torchbearers staying together instead of dropping out after they took their turn was a beautiful choice. Also, loved the choice of cauldron and its location. The resonance with French ingenuity, history, etc. was thoughtful and original. Too bad it’s only in the air a few hours each night. Celine closed out the night like the diva she is. Her performance was all the more moving for her personal story. Clearly the creative team imagined the show for the tv audience. I suspect it would’ve been a bit of a let down in person with heavy reliance on Jumbotrons. The rain was unfortunate. I’m sure the creators were disappointed and there were probably a number of things that had to be cut at the last minute due to weather. But Olympic goodwill is a real phenomenon. And I think all the spectators and participants were determined to have a great time no matter how wet they got. On balance, I think it was successful despite the prevailing sense of fragmentation. There were some hits and some misses. And everyone knows you can’t control the weather. I take my hat off to them for really using the city as the backdrop for the ceremony. It was a big risk and it (mostly) paid off. People will remember the boats forever. #### NBC NBC’s prime time edit was much tighter than the live broadcast. There was a lot of tedious waiting in the live version. But that’s also what Paris 2024 gave them to work with. The telecast reminded me of amateurish Rose Parade coverage at times. Kelly Clarkson may be a sweet person, but she’s not a brilliant commentator. In the live broadcast she just kept saying, “That’s so cool!” They trimmed a lot of that for prime time — mercifully. Peyton Manning was sharper. He is clearly better able to think on his feet than Kelly and he said things that were semi-relevant. Somebody should’ve taught Mike Tirico some basic French pronunciation. He has gravitas, but didn’t seem particularly well-informed or engaged. The chemistry with this trio didn’t work at all. It was a random group without prior history chosen for various demographic/marketing reasons. They never gelled as a unit. By contrast, Hoda and Savannah were far better. But they have established chemistry and experience covering live events. NBC’s sound was also very glitchy. Perhaps this was rain related, but I found it distracting. I hope they make improvements for LA.

Hey, Baron. I'm wondering if you (or anyone else here) know anything about the creative team for the LA 28 OC. LA is my hometown and I'm a production designer. I'd love to get involved, but so far I haven't been able to come up with any leads. Would be grateful for any info!

Well, 2030 may have been "quite simple to predict," but Rob's prediction speaks for itself now.... I think Sigh had the right idea regarding government guarantees. More than anything the IOC wants safe hands -- trustworthy, fully-committed partners. Finding a 2030 host has not been easy and they don't want to run the risk of anything even vaguely similar to the Commonwealth Games snafu. Paris 2024 may have its challenges, but clearly the IOC believes they can work best with the French in a compressed timeframe.

I just came across this and thought it was hysterical. https://twitter.com/adjinntonic/status/1419456186651484166?s=21

Amen.

walking away.....

My final verdict: Not wonderful, but pleasant. The "gentle and welcoming" tone was achieved. The drones were magical. The pictographs were quirky. The cauldron was serene and beautiful. It is too bad there wasn't a more cohesive, mature artistic vision -- a la Papaioannou (my hero) -- but for pandemic Games delayed by a year, it's not a bad beginning.

Lol. I think you're right.

I have a feeling that the cauldron lighting may have been devised pre-pandemic. Seemed very cohesive and refined. The Mt. Fuji reference works. The sun flowering into that towering flame. Restrained, but beautiful. More successful than Nagano I think.

Incidentally, my money is on Michael Phelps and Simone Biles together in 2028...

Anyone else getting echoes of Midori Ito?

Yeah. It's an odd choice. I mean, it is one big crescendo, so in that sense I get it.

I hear you. At the same time, art isn't easy. Finding ways to represent character, theme and history (even on a smaller scale) when there's a chance the Games might not happen at all or might be entirely virtual, etc. -- it's not a cakewalk. I disagree about the pictograms. I don't think they're AMAZING, but they were quirky, memorable AND specifically Japanese, since they originated them.

C'mon, Baron. You poo-hoo pretty much everybody's ceremonies except for Atlanta. (eyeroll emoji here)