Paris 2024 Artistic Director Thomas Jolly feels ‘duty fulfilled’
“I feel a sense of duty fulfilled,” said Thomas Jolly, the Artistic Director of the four ceremonies for the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games. After the global media attention, he now feels like directing a “small theatre for 50 spectators.”
Thomas Jolly, the Artistic Director of the four ceremonies for the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games, recently reflected on his experience and expressed a sense of “duty fulfilled” after two years of intense work. After the global media attention he received, Jolly revealed that he now wanted to focus on something more intimate, expressing his desire to direct a “small theatre for 50 spectators”.
In an interview with AFP, Jolly admitted he was “very happy and very tired” after the ceremonies. He described a number of outstanding moments, such as the “blue, white and red cloud” symbolising the French flag that hovered over the Austerlitz Bridge during the opening ceremony.
He also recalled the encounter between “Aya Nakamura and the Republican Guard” as a key example of the kind of synergy they had sought. Jolly mentioned another memorable moment during the Paralympic Opening Ceremony, when “dancers used crutches as oars” in one of Alexander Ekman’s choreographies.
Reflecting on the wider significance of his work, Jolly explained that he had always believed that “theatre is political” and that through the Paris 2024 ceremonies they had succeeded in giving “visibility, recognition and representation” to many people.
He stressed that this was “extremely political”. The overwhelming sense of “unity and pride” felt by the audience had been conveyed to him through numerous messages, confirming that “something special had happened”.
Jolly also spoke of the challenges posed by the rain during the Olympic opening ceremony, admitting that he “cried all day” that Friday. However, he found himself “energised by the power of the show” despite the last-minute weather-related adjustments.
As for the legacy of the ceremonies, Jolly hoped they had demonstrated the “power of art and live performance”, particularly in showcasing the performing arts such as “dance, theatre, opera and circus”. He expressed his wish that the ceremonies would show the authorities the “unifying power of culture” that he believed France needed.
Addressing the controversy over a scene in the opening ceremony entitled “Festivity”, Jolly recounted the cyberbullying campaign he had faced. The scene, which featured several drag queens and evoked images of the Last Supper, drew criticism from the likes of Donald Trump and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Jolly called the attacks “irrational” and insisted there was “no intention” to mock Catholicism, especially as another scene was dedicated to “Notre-Dame de Paris”. He expressed his dismay at the “hatred, insults and threats” he had received and noted that he had denounced the cyberbullying to emphasise that “discrimination is a crime”.
Asked about his future and the possibility of preparing ceremonies for the 2030 Winter Games in the French Alps, Jolly humorously remarked, “I’m out of ideas!” He added that for now he was more inclined to pursue smaller productions, saying, “I have a real desire for a small theatre for 50 people.