It was the best of times. It was the worst of times. But for whom?
Anyone who watched London's Olympic Opening Ceremony, and recalled Beijing's Opening Ceremony, had to catch the major differences in storytelling and visual presentation. The London Olympics opened with history, and so did Beijing's, except the individuals rambling around the "English countryside" inside the London stadium were anything but precise and controlled. London had drummers too, just like Beijing, but these drummers were seemingly beating on old metal cans, in dirty clothes, trying to drum louder than the fellow next to him in true western fashion. China's Olympic drummers were aligned in such a large precision pattern that it was probably spotted from outer space.
London's ceremony presented a long and complicated play of what made the UK great. London highlighted the contributions of the collective, those who brought eras such as the Industrial Revolution into being, but mainly it was individuals who were highlighted for their literature, music, film and so on. If any individuals were greatly highlighted in the Beijing Olympic Opening Ceremony, it was Confucius.
The London ceremony showed children singing from all parts of the empire, some in their pajamas, some in mismatched clothes. I found it a very touching and emotional moment in the program. I also thought the young girl singing in the Beijing ceremony was touching and emotional as well, until we learned of the Beijing director's decision to have a perfect-looking child mouth the words, while an arguably less attractive child with an incredible voice sang the song.
The Bird's Nest Stadium itself is a particularly good example of Chinese creative teamwork. Artist Ai Wei Wei's contribution was visual poetry in combination with the stadium architects. The London stadium seemed hooked up for a Cirque du Soleil performance after the Olympics clear out of London but there was certainly excitement in the air.
Looking back, Beijing's Opening Ceremony seemed to be a celebration, with a bit of smugness, for how far and fast China has entered the global stage. The London Opening Ceremony seemed to be a hodge podge of "ain't I great" showmanship. Yes, both ceremonies were beautiful in reflecting human nature. Both ceremonies were telling the story of their history. What was reflected in both was the very nature of their past culture: China is harmony working together while the West celebrates innovation out of chaos.
I also believe it is not so important what we westerners thought about the London Opening Ceremony, but what the East thought of the London ceremony. When the West watched the Beijing Opening Ceremony, we were amazed and somewhat aghast at the sheer size of the disciplined, organized and beautiful event. So Brazil's Olympic Opening Ceremony will be next. Will it be colorful and beautiful with steaks and chocolate for everyone? I hope so.
| 1 | United States | 46 | 29 | 29 |
| 2 | China | 38 | 27 | 23 |
| 3 | Russia | 24 | 26 | 32 |
| 4 | Great Britain | 29 | 17 | 19 |
| 5 | Germany | 11 | 19 | 14 |
| 6 | Japan | 7 | 14 | 17 |
Let us make no mistake in the name of diversity: we were confronted to accept it as a show of their culture (of which we Westerners know little), whereas it was really a show of their regime's line of thought and action: order above any other value, obliteration of the individuals and their identities as such. A sheer shame that should not be praised at all if we respect freedom.
Lorraine, I personally care little for China government's opinion on London's ceremony. As of its citizens, I wonder if we will get to know their real thoughts during our lives.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Up6gaJ4cvu4&feature=player_embedded
The human DNA and the light of life (in the belly)...only emotionally and intellectually castrated individuals would deny the sheer beauty of the Athens Ceremony...or nay-sayers because they can't and do not want to get over it
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_Ezjdk1THA&feature=related
and the Centaur...a sensation for eyes
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J8w1gZ8M4b4&feature=related
all the above are totally unpretentious, unlike Beijing (which was nevertheless beautiful as against the London Ceremony), Athens was not "alarmed" by some previous Opening Ceremony like the Chinese were after watching the Athenian sensation. They panicked and created something beautiful yet unmistakably pretentious and sterile regarding how it could touch the human soul. The wiser will understand what I mean, the superficial will bypass it (particularly because they are in denial)
"Perhaps it was the choice to have a main dancer who could have been on the international terror suspects list, I don't know,"
I don't know what this means? What about multiple award winning dancer and choreographer Akram Khan, MBE, could possibly put him on the "international terror suspects list"?
Excuse my lack of clarity in writing..I thought Mr Khan was excellent.
I too, found it dazzling, but not completely embraceable. I tend to find that degree of precision and uniformity unsettling. I find myself mentally counting the human costs required to produce such perfection and it does nothing to ignite feelings of warm admiration. Their show was magnificent despite this.
I agree that the London opening was completely different from what might be expected with such a large arena, numerous cast members and money at hand. Perhaps opportunities for a a truly great spectacle were squandered. But out of the somewhat rambling nature of the show blossomed some truly memorable ideas and ideologies that will stay with me forever. One of those ideas is that often time, patience and seemingly meaningless and mundane effort are required to produce something profound. And that that depth isn't achieved by fastfooding an idea with bigness or flashiness.
Some of the choices were puzzling, but why shouldn't a free public health service be celebrated?
There were several times, like during the "Abide with Me" hymn, where I tried to understand the thought behind it, until after a while I was very much moved by it. Perhaps it was the choice to have a main dancer who could have been on the international terror suspects list, I don't know, but seeing.....(continued below)
The other top moment for me was the lighting of the Olympic cauldron. To have seen each team come in and contribute their petal, to see the respect and honor given to each one and then to have young, non-famous youths as the final people - brilliant. If I was a member of the North Korean Olympic team I do not think I could misunderstand the message of inclusion and unity inherent in that gesture of the flames each ascending to join as one.
So for all its flaws I liked the ceremony. I think it achieved something quite rare in this current era. It glorified the quiet, unassuming contribution of the regular person who has worked honestly and hard in whatever area of life they may be in. And it delivered an aspiration that no matter who we are, young, old, male, female, disabled or able-bodied, living in freedom or in turmoil, that somehow, some way, we as members of this incredible human family can stand united and through our collective individual efforts make a difference, be happy and truly care for and value each other.
A very nice article with some provocative ideas regarding collective cultural expression.
I am reminded of some of the observations from Richard Nesbit's work.
When these ceremonies are viewed against the backdrop of the economic times in which they are held, one wonders if both countries would or could have made the same creative cultural statements ten years ago. And of course, one has to take into account the filtering effect of each government's approval of the creative direction/message.
One also wonders how these ceremonies would be different if the same countries held them ten years from now? While the overarching history of each country might not change, the audience and context in which the story is told would certainly influence the a change in both the telling and the interpretation.
See you in Boston,
Charles Austen Angell IDSA
Overall it's obvious which was the better Opening Ceremony. Not that I expected London would be able to top Beijing, but I thought they could do at least a lot better than they did.