Qatar dazzles the world with the opening ceremony of the Asian Cup

In a dazzling opening of the continental championship, which confirms Qatar’s ability to shine and be creative in organizing major events, the opening ceremony of the Asian Cup Qatar 2023 revealed the missing chapter from the novel Kalila and Dimna, whose stories form cultural bridges extending between all Asian countries, and draw a map of love among their peoples.

The half-hour ceremony included a musical performance based on one of the most important Asian literary legacies, which is the book “Kalila and Dimna,” which has established its place in history across the ages and generations, and is considered an immortal global legacy and an inexhaustible treasure of knowledge and wisdom.

The ceremony began after the countdown after the arrival of the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, and the first paragraphs began with a song that then inaugurated the details of the missing part of the lost narrative from the story of “Kalila and Dimna.” The ceremony witnessed a fireworks segment amidst a crowd of approximately 65,000 spectators in Lusail World Cup Stadium.

A song from the Palestinian folklore was also performed, before the crowd chanted words from the Palestinian national anthem, “My Commander, My Commander,” as messages of support for the Palestinian people.

The ceremony narrated the details of the story, which consists of 5 story chapters, by narrating it through poetic visual concepts, combining musical production, contemporary technological theatrical construction, and a dazzling design for the characters and clothing, whose inspiration extended from the multiple cultures of the 24 countries participating in the tournament.

The ceremony also discussed a group of important contemporary topics, highlighting coexistence and respect, and celebrating multiple cultural differences that are in line with the values ​​of the tournament and the host country. The theatrical design on the grounds of the Lusail World Cup Stadium was crystallized on the idea of ​​reversing the stereotypical image of the desert in contemporary works, and it was brought back. Imagine the desert in a different, creative way, paving the way for the audience to enter a world other than our own and highlighting the magic of the world and the essence of the story with an artistic touch. The ceremony also presented many important messages, one of them is that from the desert the man learns, where grains of sand fly individually in the air, but they soon coalesce as one body to create plateaus and mountains facing strong winds, and just as the desert forms part of the Qatari environment, this metaphorical image reflects the togetherness for which the people of Qatar are famous of.

One of the most unexpected elements in this painting was the oasis of flower petals, which served the narrative by representing the Asian continent. From the depths of this oasis, dazzling technological machines were born, adding a modern dimension to the story, and a mirror consisting of 5 petals rose from beneath that oasis. The number 5 was carefully chosen to represent the five poles of the Asian Union, which are the East, West, South, Central, and Southeast Asian continents.

These mirrors were precisely attached to the stadium floor, so that the performers had a free space to act and express in a way that mimicked the stages of international theaters. Through the theatrical performance on the field, the characters of Kalila and Dimna were brought to life, and the magical world of stories was revived in a creative and unique way.

Instead of relying on ambiguous designs, the characters were designed in a modern cinematic way, in line with the latest works of imagination and fantasy on the global scene.