2010 Winter Olympics Vancouver
Canada invited the world to Come Play With Us in 2010.
Torino, Italy – In a powerful and memorable eight-minute segment of the Torino Olympic Winter Games Closing Ceremony, Canada invited the world to ‘come play with us’ at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver / Whistler. Beginning with opera superstar Ben Heppner, and concluding with rock sensation Avril Lavigne, the performance featured a dazzling cast as diverse and dynamic as the country itself.
“I am enormously proud of the cultural performance our team produced for the Closing Ceremony,” said John Furlong, Chief Executive Officer of the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC). “Through a dynamic display of artistry and imagination, the world saw the diversity and wonder of Canada and our love of winter sport. I could not be happier with the performance,” he said.
One of many memorable moments of the Canadian segment occurred when Vancouver Mayor Sam Sullivan accepted the Olympic Flag. Using a specially modified wheelchair, the Mayor accepted the flag from International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Jacques Rogge to the enthusiastic applause of some 30,000 spectators in the Stadio Olimpico.
“The production was the result of many hours of planning and rehearsal, with a number of different individuals and groups, from several different parts of Canada, and ultimately performed in a country far away. Despite these considerable challenges, the team worked together successfully to make a powerful artistic statement about Canada and our love of winter sport,” said VANOC Vice President of Culture and Ceremonies Burke Taylor. He added, “My team is grateful to the many performers and colleagues in the Canadian artistic community who came together for Canada to make this production a success.”
Honored participants at the Closing Ceremony include His Worship Sam Sullivan, Mayor of the City of Vancouver; Chief Gibby Jacob, VANOC Board Member; Chief Leonard Andrew of the Lil’wat Nation; Chief Ernest Campbell of the Musqueam Nation; Chief Bill Williams of the Squamish Nation, and Chief Leah George-Wilson of the Tsleil-Waututh Nation.
The Canadian segment of the Closing Ceremony was an ensemble production which included extraordinary young talent from many parts of Canada. It was cast and rehearsed in both Vancouver and Montreal before being integrated in Vancouver and then flown to Torino. The Vancouver based performers included a specially cast dance corps and extreme sports enthusiasts on inline “sk8tes” and the latest concepts in boarding and skiing. The Montreal-based members of the cast were multi-talented acrobatic performers drawn from some of Canada’s most acclaimed circus companies including: Les 7 doigts de la main, the National Circus School / Ecole Nationale de Cirque, and, the renowned Cirque du Soleil.
The Closing Ceremony marked the conclusion of the Torino 2006 Olympic Winter Games and the beginning of the countdown to Vancouver 2010. The Closing Ceremony was seen by a live audience of approximately 32,000 spectators and an estimated worldwide television audience of 500 million. The closing of the Torino 2006 Olympic Winter Games took place 1,446 days prior to the Opening Ceremony of the 2010 Olympic Winter Games at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver.
Source: www.vancouver2010.com |
