Thomas Jolly on the opening ceremony: “Rehearsals start in March”

The opening ceremony of the Paris Summer Olympics, for the first time outside a stadium, along the Seine on July 26, will see its rehearsals begin in March, Thomas Jolly, artistic director, told AFP Olympic and Paralympic ceremonies. With Thierry Reboul, director of ceremonies for the Paris Games, he details the progress of this three-hour river parade, six kilometers long, featuring shows and performances by several hundred artists.

AFP. - How are preparations progressing?

Thomas Jolly. - The first work, that of constructing, with authors, a story along these six kilometers was validated in July 2023. The concept went into a feasibility study: the Seine does not have the same depth from one place to another, the wind does not blow in the same way from this or that bridge, we must not disturb the natural habitats of biodiversity. This study was completed at the end of 2023. The dream and reality today combine 90% harmoniously. There remains 10% of my project to readapt. Many sets are already under construction. Contact with the artists has been made and rehearsals will be able to start from March.

How will they play out?

T.J. - The show cannot be rehearsed on site. Rehearsals will take place both indoors, in very large hangars and on a nautical base, for everything that will take place with water as a material. These will be all fragmented rehearsals. In the last days, we will be able to put them end to end so that everyone can discover the final assembly on the evening of the ceremony.

What about boats?

Thierry Reboul. - We have around a hundred boats for the delegations, almost 200 in total. They board before the Pont d'Austerlitz, over a three-kilometer boarding zone. It’s huge logistics. They will follow one behind the other, with distances calculated to the nearest second. We have already done a certain number of tests, we are going to do them again with half the fleet then 100%, so that the captains of the boats are well-versed.

What will the ceremony look like?

T.J. - Around ten paintings will be spread out from the Pont d'Austerlitz to the Trocadéro. They will be crossed by delegations of athletes and hosted by artists from all disciplines - circus, dance, music, performance, visual arts...

Did you break any codes?

T.J. - Normally, a ceremony is 45 minutes of artistic show, two hours of parade (of delegations, editor's note) and one hour of protocol elements. I wanted to interweave these three main usual axes, to integrate the elements of protocol into the artistic, the parade into the artistic and that all of this makes a large, homogeneous celebration.

What is the philosophy of the ceremony?

T.J. - The whole world is watching Paris. On television, it's between 1 and 2 billion viewers. It’s time to say, “What are we? Where are we going ?". The story we wrote tells a story of what France is - present along the river with all its monuments - and of what France will be. I want each spectator to feel represented. France is both Edith Piaf but also the rapper Jul and the singer Natalie Dessay. It's a whole bunch of musical genres. France is cheese but also pretzel and couscous. It's a whole lot of diversity. The idea is to reiterate that France is a story that is constantly enriched.

In case of bad weather or safety issues, is there a plan B?

T.R. - There are a multitude of so-called “contingency” plans. For example, if it rains, we know that at a given forecast level, we will distribute ponchos. We list everything that could happen and what responses we will be able to provide.

T.J. - We have a whole bunch of possible plans. But the site of the ceremony will remain the Seine. And it will remain open to the general public in the city.

The ceremony will pass in front of Notre-Dame. How do you integrate it?

T.J.- It's a celebratory evening, we can't do without a tribute to this new spire which will rise into the sky of Paris.