Introduction Opening Ceremony Overview Scene-by · PDF fileOpening Ceremony Overview Key...

OriginsIntroductionForewords 3Baku 2015 European Games 6Welcome to Azerbaijan 8

Opening Ceremony OverviewKey points 10

Scene-by-SceneOpening Ceremony 15

CreditsPrincipal performers 47Artistic team 48Ceremonies executive 50Sponsors 51

1 Embargo: 12 June 2015, 21:00 (local time)


EmbargoInformation in this media guide is embargoed until 21:00 (local time) on 12 June 2015.

During the Ceremony there are some things we’d like to keep secret for the audience until the moment they’re revealed, so please don’t spoil the surprise.

This first ever European Games Opening Ceremony marks a historic moment for sport in Europe. We at the European Olympic Committees have long waited for the right opportunity to bring our vision of a pan-continental multi-sport event in the Olympic tradition to fruition. As the home of the Olympic Movement and a continent with a sporting tradition that is second to none, Europe deserves world-class Games.

In December 2012, Baku submitted a proposal for an innovative event worthy of the inaugural European Games, and was subsequently announced as the first host city. The dedication that Baku and the Azerbaijani government have shown to staging Games of the highest level since then has never been anything less than exemplary.

The Baku 2015 Organising Committee has displayed great commitment and resourcefulness to deliver an event of this scale in a challenging timeframe, and our confidence in them has not been misplaced.

We have 17 days of top-level competition ahead of us, and I invite you to join me in enjoying this spectacular Opening Ceremony at the Olympic Stadium, as we set out on this new sporting adventure together.

Patrick HickeyPresident, European Olympic Committees


Creating such large-scale shows can be a cold business. Meetings and meetings. Endless negotiations. Learning to read master schedules. Orchestrating hundreds of people from different countries and backgrounds. More meetings.

A fire must be lit at the heart of this immense machine. Art’s fire. Fuelled, in this case, by the essential oils of Azerbaijan’s culture.

The process has been an honour and a challenge. To paint with colours of a culture that is not my own. To research, to discover, to learn. Magnetised by the tradition’s richness and depth. I needed a way in.

It was a voice that opened the door for me. Alim Qasimov’s voice. Then Nizami’s poems. And the ideas of Zoroaster. It was tracing with my own hands the prehistoric inscriptions at Gobustan that connected me. A connection to something primal.

I designed a cauldron as an eclipse. Later I found out that in 2015 Novruz would coincide with a rare total solar eclipse over Europe. I took it as a good sign.

I tried to approach all elements with respect. My aim is to tell a human story using key Azerbaijani ingredients in a way that is contemporary, inventive and universal. My desire is to stir a sense of intimacy in the vastness of this setting.

‘I want to light a lamp and wish for a moth’, writes Nizami.

If anyone who has this culture in their blood is drawn in and moved, I will be a happy man.

Dimitris PapaioannouArtistic Director

The Opening Ceremony of the first European Games is a major event in its own right. Today, you will witness the culmination of two years of planning and the participation of more than 2,000 volunteer performers in a magnificent celebration of Azerbaijani and European culture and tradition.

The Ceremony will be a fitting way to raise the curtain on the biggest sporting event ever held in Azerbaijan, and Europe’s first-ever multi-sport event in the Olympic tradition. The Games will welcome delegations from all 50 European National Olympic Committees to take part in 253 medal events, across 20 sports in 18 venues.

To be entrusted with staging the inaugural European Games has been a great honour and privilege for Baku and Azerbaijan. We have spared no effort in repaying this trust by delivering a spectacle worthy of Europe, her athletes and the wider sporting community, for whom this will become a mainstay of the sporting calendar.

We have also worked to inspire the general public, and our Opening Ceremony is a centrepiece of these efforts. I would like to welcome you to Baku and invite you to enjoy the spectacular show here in our brand-new, state-of-the-art Olympic Stadium.

Azad RahimovMinister of Youth & Sport of the Republic of AzerbaijanChief Executive Officer, Baku 2015 European Games Operations Committee


Flamekeepers

In tribute to Azerbaijan ‘land of fire’ and the passion and warmth of its people, volunteers at Baku 2015 are called ‘Flamekeepers’.

Nearly 12,500 Flamekeepers will take on a wide variety of roles (there are 124 across 30 different functions): from welcoming visitors to transporting athletes, helping out behind-the-scenes and making sure the results get displayed as quickly as possible.

The Gilan Textile Park will produce 110,000 uniform items for the Flamekeepers to wear.

Games Academy

The Baku 2015 Games Academy is an innovative and impactful learning programme that’s been developed to build the skills and knowledge required to deliver the European Games and leave a lasting legacy in Azerbaijan.

Participants include students who graduated from universities in Azerbaijan in the last five years and a selection from the 50 EOC nations. Intensive training covers the core knowledge and skills needed to deliver large, complex projects; plus real hands-on practical experience and mentoring by experienced members of the BEGOC team.

In December 2012, Baku was announced as the host city for the first-ever European Games – an exciting and innovative multi-sport event for the continent.

The Games mark a historic moment for European sport, and for Azerbaijan it will be a milestone in the country’s progress as an independent, forward- looking member of the European family.

The Opening Ceremony will be held in the newly- built Olympic Stadium on Friday 12 June, and the following 17 days will see nearly 6,000 athletes competing in 253 medal events.

There will be a total of 20 sports, including four exciting non-Olympic sports – 3x3 Basketball, Beach Soccer, Karate and Sambo.

Twelve sports offer qualification opportunities for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games – Archery, Athletics, Boxing, Cycling, Judo, Shooting, Swimming, Table Tennis, Taekwondo, Triathlon, Volleyball and Wrestling.

Azerbaijan has always had a passion for sport and its investment in the Games will pay dividends in the future as the country hosts further events, such as the 2016 Formula One European Grand Prix, the 2017 Islamic Solidarity Games, and UEFA Euro 2020 football matches.

Part of the lasting legacy will be to help educate and inform Azerbaijan’s younger generation (40% of the population are aged under 25) about the sporting world and major event management – invaluable skills in shaping the country’s future.

European Olympic Committees

The idea to formally bring together European National Olympic Committees began in 1967. Today, led by President Patrick Hickey, the EOC pursues the objectives of the Olympic Charter and develops programmes and activities geared to the specific needs of its 50 member nations.

Baku 2015 European Games

FACTS & STATS

17 competition days

18 venues

20 sports

50 National Olympic

Committees

253 medal events

6,000 athletes


The largest country in the Caucasus region, Azerbaijan is located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe. It shares borders with Russia, Georgia, Armenia, Turkey and Iran. While its eastern coastline is bounded by the Caspian Sea – the world’s largest enclosed inland body of water.

A land of plentiful natural resources, centuries-old culture and deeply-engrained hospitality, Azerbaijan has always played a vital role in the region.

It’s a nexus of ancient historical empires. But also a new nation – independent since 1991 – and a youthful country, with 40% of the 9.5 million population aged under 25.

It’s been known for its oil springs and natural gas sources since ancient times, when Zoroastrians (for whom fire is an important symbol) erected temples around burning gas vents in the ground.

Azerbaijan enjoys a booming economy that achieved the second highest GDP growth in the world between 2000 and 2010. The boom is largely driven by natural resources, but there’s also a strong maritime tradition and growing agriculture and tourism industries.

Nine out of 11 climate zones are present in Azerbaijan – from subtropics to Alpine mountains. At the extremes, temperatures can reach 46°C and drop as low as -33°C.

Food is deeply rooted in the history, traditions and values of the nation. Aside from wonderful soups and kebabs, one of the most widespread dishes is the rice-based plov. Pomegranates (‘nar’) are also a feature of the cuisine. As a symbol of unity in Azerbaijani folklore, they can be seen everywhere – even one of the Baku 2015 mascots takes the form of a pomegranate.

The cosmopolitan capital, Baku, sits on the shore of the Caspian Sea surrounded by semi-desert. Its UNESCO-listed Old City is ringed by burgeoning new skyscrapers yet, barely a few hours’ drive away, timeless rural villages are backed by the soaring Caucasus mountains.

Welcome to Azerbaijan

MAJOR EVENTS COMING UP IN AZERBAIJAN

The Baku European Grand Prix 2016 will see Formula One cars racing

through the streets of Baku.

Athletes from more than 50 countries will gather in Azerbaijan for the Islamic Solidarity Games 2017.

Three group stage football matches and a quarter-final of the

UEFA European Championships 2020 will be played at the Olympic Stadium.

ORIGINS Opening Ceremony


• The Opening Ceremony of the inaugural European Games is a historic event for Azerbaijan and the European sporting community. Brought together by world-leading artistic, production and technical teams, it promises to be creative, inspiring and memorable.

• The Ceremony aims to tell a universal human story using elemental Azerbaijani ingredients in a way that is contemporary, inventive and universal, but always respectful of the culture’s enormous richness and depth.

• Circles are a recurring theme in the Ceremony. From the shape of the stage to images of the sun and moon. The circle has no beginning and no end. Simple and beautiful, it reminds us of the cycle of the seasons, the circle of life, and is a symbol of unity and eternity.

• Artistic Director, Dimitris Papaioannou came to international prominence with the Ceremonies for the Athens 2004 Olympic Games, which were universally hailed ‘a triumph’.

• The majority of the 2,000+ volunteer performers are from Azerbaijan, but there are also representatives from 17 other countries. They completed more than 600 rehearsal sessions.

• More than three-quarters of the music is by Azerbaijani composers, or created using local classical and folk themes. Special tribute is paid to three major Azerbaijani composers of the 20th century: Uzeyir Hajibayli, Gara Garayev and Fikret Amirov, as well as two legendary performers from Azerbaijan who are with us in the stadium tonight: mugham vocalist Alim Qasimov and percussionist Natig Shirinov.

• The Baku Olympic Stadium has been transformed into a vast scenic machine, with one of the most complex stage sets ever built on this scale. This magic box of tricks will create extraordinary images before our eyes, using the four natural elements – wind, water, earth and fire – all hidden away in over 6km of cracks in the ground.

• The set took three months to build, but it will take just three days to take it all down so that the stadium is ready for the Athletics on 21-22 June.

• More than 300 production staff from 28 countries, and 1,000 crew from 34 countries have been involved in bringing the Ceremony to fruition.

Key points

Dimitris PapaioannouArtistic Director

Tina PapanikolaouAssociate Artistic Director

Teodor CurrentzisVangelino CurrentzisMusic Directors

Thanassis DemirisEva ManidakiProduction Designers

Robert A. DickinsonLighting Designer

YashiCostume Designer

Bryn WaltersDirector of Mass Choreography

Kat VálatsurChoreographer (Miniatures)

Nikos LagousakosChoreographer (Male Dance & Yalli)

Eric TuckerPyrotechnic Designer

Scott WillsallenAudio Designer

Artistic team Running order

14 Welcome

16 Flag and Anthem

18 The First Flame

20 Nizami and the Miniatures

24 Pomegranate

26 Fifty Flags

28 EOC Flag

30 Unity

32 Europa and the Bull

34 Let the Games Begin

36 Origins: Wind and Water

38 Origins: Earth

40 Origins: Fire

42 Origins: Eclipse

44 Farewell

Embargo: 12 June 2015, 21:00 (local time)

Sunday 28 JuneArtistic Director, James Hadley’s Closing Ceremony will explore the union of traditional and modernAzerbaijani culture. We’ll see how the past is shaping the present and influencing the future. And celebratethe achievements of the athletes and the success of these inaugural Games.

Closing Ceremony

Culture 2015

Throughout JuneBaku has an exceptional and diverse mix of cultural venues, ranging from the bold and modern Heydar Aliyev Centre to the grand and ornate State Opera and Ballet Theatre, and a wealth of other concert halls, theatres, museums, cinemas and galleries. To tie in with the Baku 2015 European Games, an exciting programme of events has been programmed throughout June, including opera, ballet, theatre, film and visual arts.

For more information on Ceremonies and the Culture Programme visit

www.baku2015.com

2,000+ lighting fixtures.

12,000+ ear pieces and 180,000+ recycled batteries used by the cast and crew.

250 distance of aerial lines in metres, across the stadium, with a capacity to carry 7.5 tons.

110length of power cable, in kilometres, and 12 megawatts of generator power are used for the Ceremony.

800 speakers and 25km of cabling for the sound system.

500+ truck loads of freight and 100 tons of airfreight came from 20 countries to create the Ceremony.

20.5 million

man hours spent building the new Olympic Stadium since work began in June 2011.

Opening Ceremony facts & stats

Opening Ceremony scene-by-scene


A thunderous sound is heard and a hush falls over the audience. From the silence we hear Alim Qasimov singing an improvised mugham.

His vocal leads to rhythmic drumming and a countdown from 24 to zero.

In 1991, as a result of the collapse of the Soviet Union, Azerbaijan restored its lost independence. Tonight our countdown starts at 24, to mark the 24th anniversary of the restoration of the independence of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

24 is also the number of hours in a day – one full rotation of the earth. The movements of the earth, moon and sun will play a vital role in tonight’s Ceremony.

The sounds we hear are distinctively Azerbaijani, locating us on the eastern edge of Europe, on the shores of the Caspian Sea.

As the countdown nears zero, the drumming builds to a musical climax with 50 drummers. The stadium is ablaze with fireworks and nearly 1,000 female dancers fill the entire main stage with their skirts of vibrant geometric patterns and decorative motifs, taken from the country’s world-famous carpets.

WelcomeDuration: 00:06:00

• Alim Qasimov, People’s Artist of Azerbaijan, is a living legend of the mugham tradition,and one of the world’s great singers. He was awarded the prestigious International Music Council-UNESCO Music Prize in 1999. See biographies p47.

• Baku-born, Natig Shirinov is considered one of the greatest naghara drum players of our time. This evening he leads his group of 50 drummers, playing at a metre wide handmade drum he designed himself. See biographies p47.

Action

Alim Qasimov sings poetry specially written to open the Ceremony:We have space in our hearts for all our guests.We will sing 1001 songs for all who come to this flame.

Video screens show the countdown from 24 to zero on a traditional naghara drum, back-lit to look like the moon.

Nearly 1,000 female dancers fill the entire main stage with their skirts, creating the patterns and motifs of Azerbaijan’s world-famous carpets.

Cast

• Uzeyir Hajibayli (1885–1948) is recognised as the father of Azerbaijani classical music and opera. This evening, as the dancers perform, we hear an extract from his opera, Koroğlu (The Blind Man’s Son), which premiered in 1937.

• Mugham is a complex art form that weds classical poetry and musical improvisation. It’s been suggested that mugham’s complex repetitions, variations and symmetry mirror the sophisticated patterns seen on Azerbaijani carpets.

• A selection of mugham music was included on the ‘golden record’ aboard the Voyager spacecraft in 1977. A record that would, if discovered by aliens, represent humanity.

Music

• Carpets have been made in Azerbaijan since the 2nd century BC and represent the country’s ancient past and unique culture. Their geometric patterns, vivid colours and craftsmanship are recognised around the world.

• Traditionally, carpets are rolled out to welcome and honour guests.

• Carpets are an integral part of daily life in Azerbaijan and a symbol of ‘home’: providing comfort and warmth on floors, walls and rooftops.

• Both the Azerbaijani mugham and carpet weaving are on the UNESCO List of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

16,000m2 fabric used for the dancers’ skirts. That’s equivalent to 13 Olympic-sized swimming pools. Each skirt is unique and designed for its specific place on stage.

10 members of a traditional folk orchestra are sitting on traditional carpets.

856 performers wear 2m wide skirts with six layers that are peeled back to reveal carpet patterns and the flag of Azerbaijan.

Facts & stats

Background notes


With a final swish of their skirts, the dancers create the Azerbaijani flag. Fireworks shoot up from the stage, reaching twice the height of the stadium.

A fanfare draws our attention to the Presidential Box and welcomes:

Ilham Aliyev President of the Republic of Azerbaijan

Mehriban Aliyeva First Lady of the Republic of Azerbaijan Chair, Baku 2015 European Games Organising Committee (BEGOC)

Patrick Hickey President, European Olympic Committees

The flag of Azerbaijan is carried by eight and raised by three servicemen of the National Guard of the Special State Protection Service.

The audience are asked to stand for the national anthem – a two-minute orchestral version played by the Azerbaijan State Symphony Orchestra.

Flag and AnthemDuration: 00:03:17

Action

Ilham Aliyev, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan since 2003. President of the Azerbaijan National Olympic Committee since 1997.

Mehriban Aliyeva, Chair of BEGOC, is President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, a UNESCO and ISESCO Goodwill Ambassador, President of the Azerbaijan Rhythmic Gymnastics Federation and is a member of the Executive Board of the Azerbaijan National Olympic Committee.

Patrick Hickey has been President of the European Olympic Committees since 2006. He’s also President of the Olympic Council of Ireland and a member of the IOC’s Executive Board. As an athlete, he excelled in Judo, becoming an Ireland national champion.

• The fanfare is an extract from Dmitri Shostakovich’s ‘Festive Overture’.

• The national anthem was composed by Uzeyir Hajibayli in 1919.

•

Music

• The national flag has three horizontal stripes. Blue symbolises Turkic heritage, red represents the progress to establish a modern state and the development of democracy, while green is a link to the nation’s relation to Islamic civilizations.

• The Azerbaijani flag that flies in Baku, on the shores of the Caspian Sea, is one of the largest in the world – 35 x 70m. It tops a 162m high flagpole.

11 members of the armed forces carry and raise the flag.

Facts & stats

Background notes


Stadium screens show the Journey of the Flame across Azerbaijan.

On 26 April – 47 days ago – Ilham Aliyev, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, captured the European Games Flame from the earth at Ateshgah, an ancient and sacred fire temple on the outskirts of Baku. Since then it’s travelled nearly 5,500km, warming the hearts of people across the country. It’s been carried by more than 1,000 torchbearers and come within an hour’s travelling time of 99% of the population.

The journey ends this evening as the final torchbearer, Ilham Zakiyev, enters the stadium. He’s accompanied by Said Guliyev.

As they move towards the centre, we see that the ground beneath them is cracked earth, like Azerbaijani landscapes found around mud volcanoes.

At the centre, Said Guliyev raises a boulder to reveal a pit in the earth. As Ilham Zakiyev lights a fire in there, his torch is extinguished. The pit is covered over again and as they leave, we see glimpses of fire or lava flowing through the cracks in the earth. This new energy under the ground will power the rest of the Ceremony.

The First FlameDuration: 00:09:09

1

flame.

48 days.

61

locations.

1,000+ torchbearers.

5,500 kilometres.

The flame has been transported over ground by bus, funicular railway, bicycle and Karabakh horse; underground on the Baku metro; on water by boat; and in the air by plane.

Action

Stadium screens show the Journey of the Flame across Azerbaijan. An LED ribbon around the stadium, almost 700m long, gradually fills with the names of all the locations.

A boulder is lifted in the centre of the stadium, and the first flame is buried in the ground to energise all the action to come.

Journey of the Flame

• During the video, we hear ‘Gone in Bloom and Bough’ by Caspian.

• Jean Sibelius’ ‘Symphony No 5’ is heard as the final torchbearer enters the stadium.

• All orchestral pieces were recorded for the Ceremony by MusicAeterna, conducted by Teodor Currentzis.

Music

• Naturally-occurring eternal fires dot the landscape of Azerbaijan. These burning hillsides are caused by gas seeping through cracks in the earth, and fire-worshipping Zoroastrians built temples at these sites – like the one at Ateshgah, where the Baku 2015 Torch was lit.

• Azerbaijan is also home to another unusual geological phenomenon: mud volcanoes. They emit cold mud, water

and gas almost continually, but sometimes erupt with great force, shooting flames hundreds of metres into the air, and depositing tonnes of mud over the surrounding area to create a cracked earth landscape – like our stage.

• In Greek mythology, the original ‘torchbearer’ was Prometheus, who stole fire from Mount Olympus and gave it as a gift to humankind.

Background notes

• Ilham Zakiyev is an Azerbaijani judoka. In 1998, while on army combat duty, he was wounded by a bullet to the head, leaving him blind. After a long rehabilitation he returned to the sport he’d taken up as an 11 year old and went on to win gold at two Paralympics, two World Championships and five European Championships.

• He’s accompanied by Said Guliyev who won gold in Taekwondo at the Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympic Games.

Torchbearer

The final torchbearer, Ilham Zakiyev, enters the stadium.

6 length in km of the cracks in the ground, which will reveal extraordinary images and effects later in the Ceremony.

Facts & stats


The fire flowing through cracks in the earth sweeps towards a man standing at the edge of the stage and awakens him like a ghost or hologram.

He is the poet Nizami, holding a set of scales with two puppet figures. As we hear an extract from his poetry, he leads us into the world of his imagination.

When Nizami spins his small scales, a huge set of scales slowly spin over the centre of the stadium.

A puppet woman dances on the silver disc (the moon) while a puppet man dances on the gold one (the sun). We have here the duality of humankind: female and male forces in perfect balance.

The puppet couple are Leyli and Majnun, a pair of star-crossed lovers from one of the best-known stories in Azerbaijani literature, also told by the poet Nizami. They orbit each other and yearn to be with each other, but dance apart and never come together.

Nizami and the MiniaturesDuration: 00:11:17

• Ilkin Aslanov (Nizami) is one of this evening’s more than 2,000 volunteer performers. Discovered during the open auditions, he is very proud to be playing the great poet Nizami. See biographies p47.

• On the measuring scales we see tribal dancer Patricia Zarnovican and body-popper Marquese Scott — their dazzling, puppet-like movements make it hard to believe that they’re live performers. See biographies p47.

Action

Fire spreads through cracks in the earth to materialise a man

– the poet Nizami.

We hear Nizami’s poetry as he walks around the stage holding a set of measuring scales. As he spins them, a huge set of scales slowly spin over the centre of the stage.

Our puppet-like dancers – Nizami’s Leyli and Majnun – dance on the measuring scales. We see female energy on a silver disc like the moon, and male energy on a gold disc like the sun. These two forces will play a central role later on in the Ceremony.

Cast

• Music composed by Vangelino Currentzis, based on ‘Dance of the Girls with Guitars’ – from the 1957 ballet Path of Thunder by Baku-born composer Gara Garayev. Garayev also wrote the score for a ballet based on Nizami’s ‘Seven Beauties’.

Music

• Nizami Ganjavi (1141–1209) – born in Ganja, north west Azerbaijan – is considered one of the world’s greatest poets. The love story, ‘Leyli and Majnun’ by Nizami is the third of his five long narrative poems, ‘Khamsa’ (Quintet).

• The poet, Byron described ‘Leyli and Majnun’ as the ‘Romeo and Juliet’ of the East. The opera Leyli and Majnun, written by Azerbaijani composer Uzeyir Hajibayli in 1908, was the first opera in the muslim world. And the story inspired Eric Clapton’s bestselling song, ‘Layla’.

15 height of the measuring scales, in metres. Each disc is 4m wide.

9,586m2

size of the stage – equivalent to eight Olympic-sized swimming pools.

250 shipping containers could fit under the stage. It has one of the biggest revolves ever built and is operated by 27 individual motors.

Facts & stats

Background notes


300 performers appear on a ring around the stage.

The ring suddenly fills with colour as scenery rises from below – images from the centuries-old tradition of miniatures painting. The performers put the scenery together in front of our eyes.

We’ve entered the world of Nizami.

The ring starts to revolve, like an enormous music box or carousel. The performers – dressed and fully made-up to look like characters from the miniature paintings – bring the vibrant layered landscapes to life, moving like puppets.

Nizami leads us through scenes based on nine themes in his work – from ‘Seven Beauties’ to ‘Paradise’. We see houses, a palace, a school. Princes and princesses. Dragons, horses and other creatures – real and mythical.

Once the ring has turned full circle, a pomegranate tree rises from below and Nizami picks one of the fruit. Suddenly, everything freezes.

Nizami and the Miniatures [CONTINUED]

• Miniature paintings are found in Azerbaijani books and manuscripts dating back to the Middle Ages. Heroes of Nizami’s poems were held in high regard by miniatures artists and their work occupies a special place in the history of world art.

• Sets, props and puppets are made of padded fabric. All the miniatures artwork was recreated by hand, by a skilled team of painters, before being printed on this massive scale.

300 performers.

240 metres, circumference of the ring of scenery.

200

trap doors through which scenery rises.

Facts & stats

Background notes

Hunting–ParadiseWe see a colourful landscape

filled with hunters and animals. And a man lying in idyllic

surroundings. Beside him is a simurg – a benevolent, mythical

phoenix-like creature.

Nine themes from Nizami’s work, portrayed on the ring of scenery

CommunityNizami writes about kings and

queens, but also about daily life. We see men bathing in a hammam and the school

where Leyli and Majnun (the characters of the scales) met.

Seven BeautiesOne of Nizami’s major works, ‘Seven Beauties’ follows the

story of a prince as he encounters seven women, each of whom

represents a stage in his enlightenment.

RespectMajnun’s father is

disappointed when Leyli’s father won’t

consent to the young couple’s marriage.

LoveKhosrow and Shirin sit together,

a little before they’re married, and her maids tell them stories. And we see the great lover and hunter, king Bahram Gur with

the princess of the red pavilion.

Nomadic LifeA colourful landscape

of tents provides the backdrop to a

reconciliation scene between the lovers

Khosrow and Shirin.

WarriorsWe see preparations

for battle. An astrolabe, a dragon and Iskander’s military expedition to

the East.

The Journey of Iskander

Iskander (Alexander the Great) was celebrated

as a global hero. In Nizami’s poem, he travels widely and meets with all

manner of wonders.

Khosrow and ShirinNizami’s version of the

love story presents the lengthy courtship of Khosrow and Shirin as a journey of personal and

spiritual transformation.

2 3 1 9

4 5 6 7 8


The miniatures world around Nizami disappears below the stage, the measuring scales exit, and the performers slowly leave.

Nizami holds a pomegranate in his hand. We then discover a huge pomegranate – a token of abundance, rebirth, love and good luck, and a symbol of Azerbaijan – slowly flying into the centre of the stadium.

The pomegranate splits open to release its seeds – hundreds of ruby-like balloons float around the stadium.

In Nizami’s poetic universe, pomegranates burst open from an excess of love – like our pomegranate this evening.

The flying pomegranate seeds create a festive atmosphere to welcome the athletes for the Parade of Nations to come.

PomegranateDuration: 00:02:40

• A collage of two pieces by Jean Sibelius – ‘Symphony No 2 in D major’ and ‘Pelléas et Mélisande Op 46’.

Action

A huge pomegranate splits open and its ‘seeds’ float around the stadium.

Music

• Pomegranates (‘nar’) can be seen everywhere – from the dinner table to an annual festival in celebration of the iconic fruit. Even one of the Baku 2015 mascots takes the form of a pomegranate.

11 height of the pomegranate, in metres.

Facts & stats

Background notes

The poet Nizami holds a pomegranate in his hand.


For the nearly 6,000 athletes from 50 National Olympic Committees this is the moment when the hard work and training is behind them and the excitement of the Games ahead – 20 sports, 18 venues, 253 medal events.

The Parade of Nations is led by Greece to honour the birthplace of the Olympics. Other teams follow in alphabetical order, with the exception of the host nation who conclude the parade. So this evening, that’s Team Azerbaijan.

The athletes parade around the central stage, before taking their seats in the stands to watch the rest of the Ceremony.

During the Parade, the 50 flags are gathered on steps leading to a platform where they will be planted together. At the end of the Parade, an energetic drum beat, played by 50 drummers, accompanies a choreography with the flags that takes them to their final positions. Meanwhile, the 50 placard bearers revolve on the ring around the stage.

Fifty FlagsDuration: 00:39:52

Action

Each team is led into the stadium by a placard bearer. They’re wearing sculptural costumes featuring traditional Azerbaijani patterns.

The athletes parade around the central stage, before taking their seats in the stands to watch the rest of the Ceremony.

During the Parade of Nations, the 50 flags are gathered on steps leading to a platform where they will be planted together.

• Music for the Parade of Nations is by NTEIBINT featuring ∑tella (pronounced ‘David’ and ‘Stella’).

• The electro-pop features bursts of traditional and symphonic music by Azerbaijani composers, including Fikret Amirov, Uzeyir Hajibayli, Gara Garayev and Tofig Guliyev.

• As the host nation enters, we hear the the distinctive sound of an Azerbaijani mugham, sampling the traditional song ‘Karabakh Shiketesi’ performed by Mansum Ibrahimov. The Team Azerbaijan music is by Mikael Delta.

• The dance of the 50 flags begins with an excerpt from Aaron Copland’s ‘Fanfare for the Common Man’, followed by a percussion piece by Natig Shirinov and his 50 drummers.

Music

6,000

athletes in the Games, though not all of them take part in this evening’s Parade of Nations.

300

length in metres of the passerelle the athletes walk along.

Facts & stats

GreeceAlbaniaAndorraArmeniaAustriaBelarusBelgiumBosnia and HerzegovinaBulgariaCroatiaCyprusCzech RepublicDenmarkEstoniaFinlandFormer Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia

FranceGeorgiaGermanyGreat BritainHungaryIcelandIrelandIsraelItalyKosovoLatviaLiechtensteinLithuaniaLuxembourgMaltaRepublic of MoldovaMonacoMontenegroNetherlands

NorwayPolandPortugalRomaniaRussian FederationSan MarinoSerbiaSlovakiaSloveniaSpainSwedenSwitzerlandTurkeyUkraineAzerbaijan

The Parade of Nations is led by Greece. Other teams follow in alphabetical order. The host nation, Azerbaijan, conclude the Parade.

Parade of Nations

50

flags.

50

placard bearers.

50

drummers.

150

marshals.

122

the number of beats per minute the music is played to encourage the athletes to walk just that little bit faster!


The European Olympic Committees’ (EOC) flag is carried into the stadium by eight extraordinary sportsmen and women from across Europe.

Each one of them is an Olympic champion. And each of them is an inspiration to us all.

When the flag arrives at the flag pole, it’s transferred to eight members of the armed forces and raised by three additional members. They are all servicemen of the National Guard of the Special State Protection Service.

One flag representing all 50 members of the European Olympic Committees gathered here tonight.

EOC FlagDuration: 00:05:32

• As the EOC flag enters the stadium, we hear William Walton’s Crown Imperial (March) (1937).

Music

• The idea to formally bring together the European National Olympic Committees began in 1967. Today, led by President Patrick Hickey, the EOC pursues the objectives of the Olympic Charter and develops programmes and activities geared to the specific needs of its members.

• In addition to the European Games, the EOC organise the European Youth Olympic Festival every two years. This year the winter Festival was held in Austria/Lichtenstein and the summer Festival will be in Georgia at the end of July.

• Since 1985, the EOC have also organised the Games of the Small States of Europe – a multi-sports event for athletes from the nine countries with a population of less than one million. Held every other year, the most recent Games were in Iceland at the beginning of June 2015.

Namig Abdullayev (Azerbaijan) Freestyle Wrestling Sydney 2000

Lucie Décosse (France) Women’s Judo London 2012

Servet Tazegül (Turkey) Men’s Taekwondo London 2012

Niccolò Campriani (Italy) Men’s 50 Metre Rifle 3 PositionsLondon 2012

Katie Taylor (Ireland) Women’s Lightweight Boxing London 2012

Thomas Bimis (Greece) Men’s Synchronized 3 Metre Springboard, Athens 2004

Krisztina Fazekas Zur (Hungary) Women’s Canoe Sprint London 2012

Elena Zamolodchikova (Russia) Women’s Vault & Floor ExerciseSydney 2000

Flagbearers: Olympic gold medal winners

Background notes


A video of CERN, and the scientists who work there, plays on the stadium screens.

For 60 years, CERN has brought together nations in peace through science. These European Games are a new flame of international unity through sport.

The Large Hadron Collider is the brainchild of CERN, a community of more than 10,000 physicists and engineers from more than 100 nations. It’s the biggest machine on earth and lies hidden underground in the heart of Europe.

This evening we salute a great Nobel physicist, Lev Landau, in the city of his birth – Baku.

When the video finishes the LED strip, that runs along the third level balcony, creates the effect of a particle accelerator (like the Large Hadron Collider) speeding around the stadium.

UnityDuration: 00:01:37

• An instrumental version of Radiohead’s ‘Supercollider’ accompanies the video.

Action

A video of CERN, and the scientists who work there, plays on the stadium screens.

Music

• Lev Landau (1908-68) was a prominent physicist who made fundamental contributions to many areas of theoretical physics. He was one of the inspirations behind the theory of the Higgs particle, and instrumental in the path towards the cutting-edge technology of the Large Hadron Collider. He received the 1962 Nobel Prize for his development of a mathematical theory of superfluidity.

• In April this year, the Large Hadron Collider – the world’s largest and most powerful particle accelerator – was restarted after nearly two years of maintenance and repair. The machine now runs at almost double the energy of its successful first run. Just a few days ago, the first results started coming through to scientists. Results that could lead to new and unexplored realms of physics, and yield extraordinary insights into the nature of the universe.

Background notes


From technology, we move into the world of mythology. From understanding the origins of the universe, to understanding the roots of our continent’s name.

As a large white bull and a girl slowly fly across the stadium, we’re reminded of the story of Europa.

A galaxy of twinkling stars appears beneath them. It soon emerges that it’s a map of Europe, as it might appear at night from space. As they fly off, a star shines bright over Baku.

The myth of Europa In myth, Europa was a Phoenician princess. The Greek god Zeus liked the girl and appeared to her on a beach in the form of a beautiful white bull. Charmed, Europa climbed onto the bull’s back and Zeus stole her away, crossing the sea with the girl on his back to arrive at the Greek island of Crete, on the southern tip of Europe. There, she bore Zeus three children, including Minos, the legendary founder of the first literate European civilisation. Europe was named after this mythical princess, and the image of Europa on the Bull is a symbol of the continent.

Europa and the BullDuration: 00:02:58

• Robyn Simpson (Europa) has appeared in numerous international large-scale productions. She played ‘Mary Poppins’ in Danny Boyle’s London 2012 Olympic Opening Ceremony. See biography p47.

Action

A large white bull slowly flies across the stadium.

What looks like a galaxy of twinkling stars on the floor, soon emerges as a map of Europe as it might appear at night from space.

Cast

• Leoš Janáček’s ‘On an Overgrown Path: In Tears’, performed by Håkon Austbø, is heard as Europa and the bull fly across the stadium.

Music

• Europa, after whom our continent is named, has been used as a symbol of pan-Europeanism by the European Union, Council of Europe and several individual countries.

5 length of the bull, in metres, from nose to tail.

16 lasers are used to create the map of Europe – the most ever used to produce large-scale animations on a single stage.

Facts & stats

Background notes


This segment marks the official opening of the first ever European Games.

Mehriban Aliyeva, Chair of the Baku 2015 European Games Organising Committee and First Lady of the Republic of Azerbaijan, delivers a speech in Azerbaijani and English.

Patrick Hickey, President of the European Olympic Committees, delivers a speech in English.

Our attention is then drawn to the Presidential Box from where Ilham Aliyev, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, declares the Games open.

Text of the speeches will be available to download from the media extranet.

Let the Games BeginDuration: 00:14:20

• Symphony No 1 in D Major, 4th movement, composed by Gustav Mahler in 1888.

Action

Mehriban Aliyeva, Chair of the Baku 2015 European Games Organising Committee and First Lady of the Republic of Azerbaijan, and Patrick Hickey, President of the European Olympic Committees, walk between the 50 flags from where they make their speeches.

Fireworks blaze around the stadium, following the official opening of the Games by Ilham Aliyev, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

Music

15,000 pieces of pyrotechnics.

200

hours of programming to sychronise the fireworks with the music.

5,000

hours of preparation on site have gone into creating this evening’s spectacular pyrotechnics displays.

Facts & stats


Out of the darkness we hear a lone voice singing an improvised mugham phrase. It’s Alim Qasimov, the singer we heard at the beginning of the Ceremony. We discover him sitting on a flying carpet that hovers and ripples in the air.

A woman walks across the cracked earth. She holds a copper dish of semeni (green sprouting wheat) in honour of Novruz – one of the most important festivals in Azerbaijan, that marks the arrival of spring.

Grass and local flowers spring up from under her feet, and her long translucent veil blows in the breeze.

When she reaches the centre, she puts down the dish where the ‘first flame’ was buried. Water begins to rise from the ground, creating a body of water – the Caspian Sea – in front of her. She slowly walks across the water.

As she reaches the outer edge of the water, she turns to look at the landscape she’s transformed behind her.

Origins: Wind and WaterDuration: 00:04:10

• Mugham singer, Alim Qasimov, who we also heard at the start of the Ceremony. See biography p47.

• Nargiz Nasirzada (Woman) was born in Baku. Since 2012, she’s been performing with the Azerbaijani State Dance Ensemble. See biography p47.

Action

Alim Qasimov, sitting on a flying carpet, sings an improvised mugham.

May this new beginning bloomIn the land of fire.Flowers will blossom before youIn the springtime of our land.

A woman, holding a copper dish of semeni (green sprouting wheat), walks across the cracked earth. Grass and flowers spring up from under her feet.

Water rises from the ground, creating a body of water – the ‘Caspian Sea’.

Cast

• All the music we hear from this point until the end of the Ceremony is by Azerbaijani composers.

• We begin with the improvised vocals of Alim Qasimov. He’s followed by ‘Seven Beauties, The Most Beautiful of all Beauties’ (1949) composed by Gara Garayev, with 50 drummers, led by Natig Shirinov.

Music

• Marking the first day of spring, Novruz is one of the most important festivals in Azerbaijan and one of the world’s oldest. Celebrations begin a month in advance, with each Tuesday devoted to one of the four elements – wind, water, earth and fire. According to folklore, water purifies and stirs, while wind, earth and fire awaken nature, symbolising the coming of spring.

• Semeni, a brilliant green sprouting wheat, is grown as a symbol of hope for an abundant harvest and an affirmation of life in harmony with nature.

• The copper plate carried by the woman was handmade by craftsmen in Baku.

• The name ‘Baku’ is believed to derive from ‘windswept’. Baku is known as the ‘city of winds’.

450m2 surface area of our ‘Caspian Sea’. It’s created with 18,000 litres of water coming up through the cracks.

371,000km2 surface area of the real Caspian Sea, the largest inland body of water in the world.

500length in metres of the cracks in the ground, through which grass and flowers are raised by 2,480 individual mechanisms.

Facts & stats

Background notes


As the woman watches, 100 men rise up through the earth, covered in mud and dust. They perform a ritual-like Azerbaijani dance, stamping their feet on the ground to the rhythm of 50 drummers.

As the dance builds to a climax, sections of the ground begin to break and lift up, like an earthquake. Huge boulders rise up from the ground to create an enormous mountain. Once fully formed, simple human figures, animals and boats are inscribed in fire on its sides. These are the petroglyphs (ancient rock engravings) of Gobustan.

A man breaks through the cracked earth on top of the mountain. He stands there alone. Through the silence, we hear the sound of the traditional Azerbaijani song ‘Sari Gelin’ played on the balaban.

A burning rock sits at the man’s feet. He picks it up. He looks towards the woman, who stands facing him by the ‘Caspian Sea’. They remind us of Leyli and Majnun – the unrequited couple we met earlier, dancing on the measuring scales (the sun and moon).

A black mirror disc slowly emerges behind her, rising over the horizon of the water, like a moon, to frame her.

The mountain slowly descends into the earth and disappears.

Origins: EarthDuration: 00:04:26

• Aydamir Aydamirov (Man) was born in Baku. He’s been a dancer with the Azerbaijani State Dance Ensemble since 2005. See biography p47.

Action

One hundred men rise up through the earth. They perform a ritual-like Azerbaijani dance.

Huge boulders rise up from the ground to create an enormous mountain. Simple human figures, animals and boats are inscribed in fire on its side.

The man looks towards the woman, who stands facing him by the ‘Caspian Sea’. A black mirror disc slowly emerges behind her, rising over the horizon of the water, like a moon.

Cast

• When the mountain starts to descend, we hear Fikret Amirov’s ‘One Thousand and One Nights’, Overture.

• The balaban is a traditional Azerbaijani wind instrument. Usually made of mulberry or other hard woods, it has a soft and plaintive sound.

Music

• Gobustan National Park, 60km south of Baku, occupies 4,500 hectares. It has an outstanding collection of more than 6,000 petroglyphs (ancient rock engravings) – bearing testimony to 40,000 years of rock art.

They are among humankind’s first attempts to understand and record the world, and to leave traces to be remembered by. Gobustan is on the UNESCO World Heritage List for its outstanding universal value.

16height in metres of the mountain.

52 number of lifts used to raise the mountain.

800metres of hidden LED lighting create the petroglyphs.

Facts & stats

Background notes


The man now stands at the centre of the stage holding the burning rock.

He takes a few steps towards the woman and places the rock on the ground. It triggers streams of fire that spread through the cracked earth. He picks up the rock and puts it down in two more places on his way towards the woman.

The fire spreads through the cracks behind him to inscribe an enormous human figure in the ground. It’s like flowing lava forming a giant petroglyph, or the eternal fire that burns from the ground at Yanar Dag.

As the petroglyph becomes more complex, we realise it looks like the human vein system, lit from the navel, the heart and the brain.

The man looks at the fiery landscape he’s created. The woman crosses the water to join him. He picks up the burning rock and the streams of fire quickly disappear, flowing from the hands and feet up to the top of the head.

As our story nears its climax, we’re reminded of humankind’s burning need to connect and understand, expressed through our scientific endeavours, our art and our love for one another.

Origins: FireDuration: 00:02:27

• Early references to Azerbaijan as the ‘land of fire’ have been found in 1st century Byzantine manuscripts. The phrase relates to the phenomena of burning hillsides caused by gas seeping through cracks in the earth – such as at Yanar Dag, 25km north of Baku – and to the country’s links to fire-worshipping Zoroastrians.

• Azerbaijan’s history of fire worship provided the inspiration for the design of Baku’s iconic Flame Towers – three distinctive buildings on a hillside above the Old City. At night, a screen of high-powered LEDs creates the effect of flames dancing on the facade or flags blowing in the breeze.

Action

The man stands at the centre of the stage holding a burning rock. When placed on the ground, the rock triggers streams of fire that spread through the cracked earth.

The fire inscribes an enormous human figure in the ground. It’s like a giant petroglyph, and reminds us of Leonardo da Vinci’s ‘Vitruvian Man’, which shows a perfectly proportioned figure set inside a circle.

Background notes

1 nearly one kilometre of gas piping creates the human figure in fire on the stage floor. It covers an area of 50 x 35m.

Facts & stats


The man and woman hold the burning rock and run together towards the rising disc.

They splash into the shallows of water and throw the rock towards the black mirror disc.

The burning rock smashes into the centre of the disc and shatters into pieces. Flames immediately ignite around the rim to create a ring of fire.

The lit disc is reminiscent of a total solar eclipse – a cosmic coming together of the earth, sun and moon. This symbol of unity and truce rises high in the stadium.

Like the sun and the moon in an eclipse, our couple have aligned and become one.

We immediately go live to the Baku coastline to see an upright circle of fire gradually form over the Caspian Sea. Fireworks fill the skies there and over the stadium – a huge celebration.

The Caspian Eclipse cauldron will burn throughout the Games – a landmark for the city.

Origins: EclipseDuration: 00:03:18

• ‘Path of Thunder’ (1957) by Gara Garayev arranged by his son Faraj Garayev.

Action

The man and the woman hold the burning rock and run towards the rising disc.

As the rock smashes into the disc, flames ignite around the rim to create a ring of fire – like a total solar eclipse or a sunflower.

Live from the Baku coastline, on the stadium screens we see a circle of fire gradually form over the Caspian Sea. The Caspian Eclipse cauldron will burn until the end of the Games on 28 June.

Music

• A total eclipse is among the most impressive natural spectacles – a rare and perfect alignment of the sun and moon. In that brief moment they occupy the exact same point in the heavens to create a symbol of unity. The cosmic masculine and feminine are symbolically and celestially one.

• The last total solar eclipse over Europe was on 20 March 2015, the first day of the Novruz festival.

• In 1919, the observation of a total solar eclipse helped to confirm Einstein’s theory of relativity.

Background notes

34height in metres of the eclipse cauldron in the stadium. Its arms are 30m long. The black cauldron disc is 5m in diameter.

6diameter, in metres, of the Caspian Eclipse cauldron.

Facts & stats


As the firework display builds in intensity, we see all of this evening’s performers standing around the edge of the circular stage. They hold hands and dance Yalli – the national dance of Azerbaijan. This is their bow.

During the Yalli, the names of all the Ceremony volunteer performers appear on the LED strip that runs around a stadium balcony, scrolling along its entire length.

Twenty thousand inflatable ‘pomegranate seeds’ cascade over the audience. They’re a token of love and good luck and a symbol of Azerbaijan.

This joyous Yalli dance brings the Opening Ceremony to a celebratory end.

FarewellDuration: 00:02:00

• Yalli performed by this evening’s traditional orchestra and the Natig Rhythm Group.

Action

All the performers hold hands in a circle around the stage and dance Yalli – the national dance of Azerbaijan.

Spectacular fireworks mark the end of the Opening Ceremony of the first-ever European Games.

Music

• The traditional folk dance, Yalli, is popular across Azerbaijan – more than 100 different types exist. The word ‘yal’ means row, line or chain. It is said that some of the ancient petroglyphs at Gobustan are also dancing Yalli.

Background notes

1,796 cast and volunteers take to the stage to dance into the night.

20,000 inflatable ‘pomegranate seeds’ cascade over the audience.

Facts & stats


Principal performersAlim QasimovMugham VocalistAlim is a musician and one of the foremost mugham singers in Azerbaijan. He was awarded the International Music Council UNESCO Music Prize in 1999, one of the highest international accolades in the field. His music is characterised by his vocal improvisation and represents a move away from the traditional style of mugham.

Natig ShirinovPercussionistNatig was born in Baku and is recognised as one of the greatest naghara players of our time. He’s a contemporary of well-known musicians – Ashiq Shamshir, Ashiq Shirin and Ashiq Idris. His contribution to the Azerbaijani music scene has gained him a place among a select group of artists who’ve set new musical trends in the 21st century.

Ilkin AslanovThe Poet NizamiIlkin is from Azerbaijan and he’s extremely proud of being a volunteer performer for the Opening Ceremony. He has a background in studying pantomime theatre and he’s flattered to play the role of his country’s great poet. During his university days, his theatre group, Totem, came second in a national competition.

Robyn SimpsonEuropaRobyn is an aerial, dance and circus performer and choreographer specialising in large-scale productions. Aerial and dance experience includes ‘Mary Poppins’ in Danny Boyle’s London 2012 Olympic Ceremony, and Ceremonies for UEFA-Donbass Arena, Festival of Thinkers, Arafura Games, Sochi 2014 Olympics and Paralympics, Football World Cup, World Swimming Championships, Dubai World Cup, World Athletics Championships and Basketball Championships.

Marquese ScottMajnun PuppetMarquese dazzles audiences with movements that redefine skeletal possibilities. Animated dance elements performed in extreme slow motion to lightning speeds are his trademark. His dance video, Pumped Up Kicks, has had 115 million views on YouTube and launched a new dancing career promoting some of the world’s leading commercial brands.

Nargiz NasirzadaWomanNargiz was born in Baku and graduated from the Academy of Choreography. Since 2012 she’s been dancing with the Azerbaijani State Dance Ensemble at the Azerbaijan State Philharmonic Hall.

Patricia ZarnovicanLeyli PuppetPatricia studied ballet, modern, oriental dance, American Tribal Style and Tribal Fusion with internationally renowned teachers, and soon became a sought-after dancer and instructor herself. She performs and teaches throughout Europe, the USA and Japan, at Tribal and world dance festivals, at cultural events and on TV.

Aydamir AydamirovManAydamir was born in Baku. Since graduating from the Baku Choreography School in 2005 he’s been a dancer with the Azerbaijan State Dance Ensemble at the Azerbaijan State Philharmonic Hall.


Kat VálatsurChoreographer(Miniatures)Kat is a choreographer and performer based in Berlin. Since 2009, a series of her original works have been presented at venues across Europe, including The Place (UK), Springdance Festival (Holland), HAU Hebbel-am- Ufer (Berlin), Tanzquartier Wien (Austria) and the Athens Festival. She was a grantee artist at Olafur Eliasson’s Institut für Raumexperimente in Berlin in 2013. Her explorations centre around one question, ‘What is there left to dance?’

Nikos LagousakosChoreographer (Male Dance & Yalli) & Pre-show DirectorNikos is a director and choreographer for large-scale spectacles, opera, theatre and contemporary dance. He has choreographed Ceremonies for sporting events such as the Turin 2006 World Fencing Championships, and the Rome 2009 World Aquatics Championships. In 2014, he was movement and associate director of Clusters of Light in Sharjah (UAE). He’s also directed and choreographed operas for the Salzburger Festspiele, Opernhaus Zürich, Wiener Kammeroper and Arena di Verona.

Eric TuckerPyrotechnic DesignerTrained at France’s Ruggieri Fireworks and the winner of multiple international fireworks competitions, Eric has nearly 40 years of entertainment experience. He’s produced pyrotechnic displays for hundreds of corporate clients, festivals, shows and concerts around the world, including Nike, Walt Disney, the Pan American Games and several Olympic Games Opening and Closing Ceremonies.

Scott WillsallenAudio DesignerScott is a leading expert in audio design for major international events. Credits include Ceremonies for Sochi 2014, London 2012, Vancouver 2010 and Athens 2004 Olympic Games; Melbourne 2006 and Delhi 2010 Common-wealth Games; Doha 2006 Asian Games, Singapore 2010 Youth Olympics, Rugby World Cup 2003 and 2011, and Arab Games 2011. He trained in music, engineering and physics, and holds a Masters with Honours in Audio Design and Acoustics.

Artistic teamDimitris PapaioannouConceived, visualised & directed byRooted firmly in the fine arts, Dimitris first gained recognition as a painter and comics artist before turning his attention to the performing arts as a director, choreographer, performer and designer of sets, costumes and lighting. He became more widely known as the creator of the Athens 2004 Olympic Ceremonies. Since 1986 he’s dedicated himself to creating intensely visual original works – a hybrid of experimental dance, physical theatre and performance art.

Tina PapanikolaouAssociate ArtisticDirectorTrained as a dancer, Tina performed with numerous dance companies and taught at the Greek National School of Dance. She’s been a close artistic collaborator of Dimitris Papaioannou since 1988, working as a performer, assistant director and creative producer, and was Associate Artistic Director of the Athens 2004 Olympic Ceremonies. Since 2006 she has also worked as a producer at the Athens and Epidaurus Festival.

Teodor CurrentzisMusic DirectorTeodor is the Artistic Director of the Perm State Opera and Ballet Theatre, the ensemble MusicAeterna and the MusicAeterna Chamber Choir which was formed during his tenure as Music Director of the Novosibirsk State Opera and Orchestra (2004–10). This year, he and MusicAeterna will finish recording all the Mozart Da Ponte operas for Sony. The first, ‘Figaro’, won the ECHO Prize for Opera Recording of the Year 2014.

Vangelino CurrentzisMusic Director Vangelino began his musical studies at the Hellenic Conservatory, Athens and went on to study at the Prague Conservatory and Charles University, Prague. His passion for sound design, algorithmic development and composition resulted in sharing his time between classical and electronic genres. He’s written numerous scores for film and theatre, most recently Dostoyevsky’s The Double in Athens (2014/15) and Awakening at the Alexandrinsky Theatre, St Petersburg (2014) for which he won a Golden Mask.

Thanassis Demiris & Eva ManidakiProduction DesignersThanassis and Eva are architects and founders of Flux Office, a creative practice for architecture, design and scenography. Their work in architecture, theatre, opera, dance and cinema has been shown and won awards at international events, including the Venice Architecture Biennale (2014), Venice Film Festival (Miss Violence, 2013), Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design & Space (2011), and Athens Architecture Biennale (2010). Flux Office colleagues Loukas Bakas, Konstantinos Pittas and Kalli Politi have also played an integral role in the production design for this evening’s Ceremony.

Robert A. DickinsonLighting DesignerRobert is one of the most recognised lighting designers in the entertainment industry, with a career that’s spanned three decades. During this time he’s won 19 Emmy Awards among other accolades. He has over 2,500 on-screen television credits, including the 1996, 2002, 2004 and 2010 Olympic Opening and Closing Ceremonies, the 1997 Hong Kong Handover, 2010 Shanghai Expo Opening and Closing Ceremonies, and 28 Academy Awards broadcasts.

YashiCostume DesignerYashi was born in Berlin where she studied under Martin Rupprecht and Vivienne Westwood. Since 1999 she’s worked with director Robert Wilson on productions including Krapp’s Last Tape, The Odyssey, Katya Kabanova and 1914. As a costume and set designer for theatre, opera and film she’s also worked with directors including Adriana Altaras, Daniel Schmid, Hans Neuenfels, Jean-Yves Courregelongue and Marie-Eve Signeyrole. In 2009 she received the Hein-Heckroth Prize for stage design.

Bryn WaltersDirector of MassChoreographyOver the past 15 years, Bryn has become one of the world’s leading experts in mass choreography and protocol staging for stadium events. He’s worked on ceremonies for five Olympic Games: Athens, Torino, Vancouver, London, Sochi and three Commonwealth Games: Manchester, Melbourne, Delhi. Other ceremonies credits include: Rio 2007 Panamerican Games, Pescara 2009 Medi-terranean Games, Donbass Arena 2009, Shakhtar 75th 2011, Juventus Stadium Inauguration 2011, Euro 2012 and Veracruz 2014.


Ceremonies executiveAzad RahimovMinister of Youth & Sport of the Republic of AzerbaijanChief Executive Officer, Baku 2015 European Games OperationsCommitteeOver a near 30-year career, Azad has held senior roles at the Khatai district Committee of the Youth Union (Komsomol) and he was Head of Youth Organisations Committee of Azerbaijan. He was General Director at Ros-Imesko and Italdizayn Close Joint-Stock Company. In 2006 he was appointed Minister of Youth and Sport. He was President of the Azerbaijan Dance Sport Federation (2005-6) and, since 2006 has been Vice President of the Azerbaijan National Olympic Committee. In 2014 Azad was awarded the Olympic Order.

Catherine UgwuDirector of CeremoniesCatherine has over 20 years’ experience delivering some of the world’s largest events. Most recently, she was Executive Producer for London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Ceremonies and the Glasgow Handover Ceremony at the Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games, as well as Producer for the 2006 Doha Asian Games Opening Ceremony and the XVII Manchester Common-wealth Games Closing Ceremony. In 2013, Catherine received an MBE for her significant contribution to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Scott GivensExecutive ProducerScott is an Olympic Ceremonies and mega-event producer with credits spanning more than 400 spectaculars, including 12 Olympic Games. Most recently he served as Executive Producer of the Sochi 2014 Olympic Ceremonies. He’s a recipient of the Olympic Order, the highest honour afforded by the International Olympic Committee. His productions have been recognised by numerous awards, including Emmy Awards, Telly Awards, Themed Entertainment Association and Sports Business Awards.

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