Au revoir Paris, Hola LA.
In a nutshell, that was the simply accomplished ceremony of the Video games of the XXXIII Olympiad.
It was Tom Cruise leaping off the rim of the Stade de France to take the Olympic flag from LA Mayor Karen Bass and Simone Biles. Because the guitar riffs of H.E.R. stuffed the air, Cruise then exited on a motorcycle to ship the flag to a sunny West Coast. It was the Pink Sizzling Chili Peppers, Billie Eilish and Olympic fixture Snoop Dogg stepping into the groove down in Lengthy Seashore.
It wasn’t telling of the total scope of Los Angeles, but it surely was pure Hollywood.
It was excessive and cliche stuffed – – as if something much less would have sufficed.
Subsequent to the artistry of Paris, it could have appeared so American. But, if the subsequent Summer season Video games are in America, and within the residence of Hollywood ..nicely, as Jimmy Fallon close to screamed on NBC on Sunday: “that’s the way you do it!”
When Dr. Dre confirmed as much as reunite along with his long-time collaborator and Tremendous Bowl LVI Halftime Present pal Snoop, it was pure LA Love, to paraphrase the N.W.A. vet’s 1994 ‘California Love’ hit with Tupac Shakur.
With all that pre-recorded star energy, the spectacle of the Paris portion of the three-hour closing ceremony merely dimmed. That was only a reality even with Gold medal swimmer Léon Marchand bringing a full circle conclusion to the occasion as he introduced the Olympic flame into the French stadium.
Sure, again in France, Phoenix confirmed up amidst a mosh pit of athletes on the Stade de France, Joined by Kavinsky and Angèle, the rock band gave us what can be a mini-Coachella throughout the Atlantic.
Nevertheless it was no LA, the place actual Coachella headliners flexed for his or her hometown.
Because the efficiency parts of Paris’ farewell started, the glittery Golden Voyager and the return of the metallic horse rider and the mysterious hooded Murderer’s Creed character from the opening ceremony was overshadowed by strobe lights and the stadium vast story of the Olympics from antiquity to as we speak from wristbands among the many crowd. In brief, as the enormous rings have been raised, it was Cirque du Soleil meets Sport of Thrones with extra dry ice {that a} Bjork live performance.
Performers throughout the Closing Ceremony of the Olympic Video games Paris 2024
Very very similar to the opening ceremony, which was additionally the brainchild of inventive director Thomas Jolley, the overly conceptual French portion of the multi-segment closing ceremony stumbled as a small display screen occasion, even when it seemed spectacular within the stadium itself.
The primary Olympics to realize gender parity, as we speak’s closing ceremony to the 19-day occasion was a way more conventional affair than the disjointed July 26 extravaganza on the River Seine.
From the opening music by Zaho de Sagazan and Marchand starting his journey, transporting the Olympic flame again to the 70,000-packed stadium, all of the rumors and leaks have been targeted on the subsequent video games and what would LA deliver to its a part of the present on Sunday.
Attempting to maintain it up-close and private for viewers within the early portion of the closing ceremony, NBC’s principal Olympics man Mike Tirico and his newly minted co-host, Jimmy Fallon, pulled off a couple of methods. Chatting stay with Group USA flagbearers and Gold medalists Katie Ledecky and Nick Mead as they entered the stadium with the Parade of Athletes was actually a little bit of enjoyable. The medal ceremony for the Ladies’s marathon runners and the athletes’ of Queen’s “We’re the Champions” have been each a pleasure to look at.
In any other case, over on NBC, it was primarily a listing of stats, names and bullet factors about sustainability from the duo and commentators 1998 Olympic determine skating gold medalist Tara Lipinski, two-time Olympian determine skater Johnny Weir and Terry Gannon. Although the “God, the French are cool” comment as a piano vertically performed “The Hymn to Apollo” made one marvel if any of them had ever attended a Vegas residency.
Irritating nobody however the IOC, NBC lower away from most of retiring Olympic boss Thomas Bach speech concerning the position the Video games play in making a tradition of peace speech. Whereas anticipated to be the final time we hear from Bach in his current capability, the remarks have been, just like the closing ceremony itself, pretty tame and boilerplate, all issues thought-about.
Coming off the re-normalization of the Olympics in Paris, the Metropolis of Angels and the Casey Wasserman-led Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee made certain to placed on a real Hollywood manufacturing. Earlier Sunday, Wasserman instructed NBC’s Tirico that what he realized probably the most from Paris 2024 was “their willingness to actually suppose exterior the field.”
Honestly, there wasn’t a lot considering exterior the field with the LA portion of the closing ceremony, however there was lots of what invented the field.
French singer-songwriter Yseult performs throughout the closing ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Video games
Paris could have executed it their approach, as Yseult sang the famed Sinatra tune primarily based on primarily based on the music of ‘Comme d’habitude’ on the very finish of as we speak’s occasion. LA clearly plans to go full bread and circuses in 2028 and provides the individuals what they need.
