PARIS — Drag queens took center stage at the Paris Olympics opening ceremony in a show of unprecedented inclusivity, showcasing the vibrant and influential role of France’s LGBTQ community but also drawing criticism for a scene that resembled “The Last Supper.”
The four-hour spectacular along the Seine featured performances from global stars including queer icons Celine Dion and Lady Gaga, a kitschy mix of historic and contemporary French culture, and culminated in a flotilla of thousands of Olympic athletes arriving by boat.
Nikki Doll, a contestant on the 12th season of RuPaul’s Drag Race and best known as the host of Drag Race France, took part in a high-octane fashion runway segment alongside Paloma, winner of Drag Race France season 1, Pichet from season 3, and Giselle Palmer. At first, they stood to the side of the runway, intently watching the models strutting about. Then, they joined in, showing off their own styles.
Delegates arrive at the Trocadero as spectators watch French singer Philippe Catherine perform on a giant screen during the opening ceremony of the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, Friday, July 26, 2024. (Ludovic Marin/The Associated Press)
Le Philippe, who recently won a French drag race, expressed “surprise” and “pride” at the scale and representativeness of the ceremony.
“I thought it would just be a five-minute drag event with queer representation. I was amazed. It started with Lady Gaga, then drag queens showed up, a massive rave, and fire in the sky,” they said. “It felt like a coronation all over again, and we’re so proud to see our friends and queer people on the world stage.”
Their daring performance included a scene reminiscent of Leonardo da Vinci’s “The Last Supper,” with drag queens and other performers appearing in a composition reminiscent of Jesus Christ and his apostles, which garnered a lot of attention but mixed reactions.
21st century version of Leonardo da Vinci’s “The Last Supper”
LGBTQ icon DJ and producer Barbara Bucci kept the party going on a footbridge over the Seine, adorning the parade of athletes with silver halo-like headdresses, including some from countries that criminalize LGBTQ people. She was flanked on either side by drag artists and dancers.
The painting recalled Da Vinci’s “The Last Supper,” depicting the moment Jesus Christ declared that his apostles would betray him.
The show’s artistic director, Thomas Jolly, says that wasn’t the intention: He saw the moment as a celebration of diversity, and the table where Butch played music as a feast, a tribute to French cuisine.
“My desire is not to be disruptive, nor to ridicule or shock,” Jolie said. “Above all, I wanted to send a message of love, a message of inclusion, not to be divisive in any way.”
“Last Supper” reference at Olympics shocks and shocks some
Still, critics could not forget what they had seen.
The French bishops’ conference described the incident as “a spectacle of mockery and ridicule for Christianity” and said: “Our thoughts are with all Christians on all continents who are hurt by the outrage and provocation of these particular scenes.”
But LGBTQ athletes seemed to be having a great time: British diver Tom Daley posted a photo recreating the famous scene from Titanic with Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio, but with the roles reversed: Daley stood with his arms outstretched on the bow of the boat, with oarsman Helen Glover supporting him from behind.
” [French] “The governments know what they are doing. They want to present themselves in the best possible light. They have shown no restraint in their expression,” Le Philippe told The Associated Press.
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Meanwhile, prominent far-right politician Marion Maréchal condemned the performance on social media.
“To all Christians around the world who watched the Paris 2024 ceremony and felt insulted by this drag queen parody of the Last Supper, know that it is not France that is speaking, but a left-wing minority ready for any provocation,” she posted on social platform X, a sentiment echoed by religious conservatives around the world.
“…because the beheading of a Habsburg and the mockery of a central Christian event are the two first things that come to mind when I think of the #Olympics,” Hungary’s ambassador to the Vatican, Eduard Habsburg, posted on X, also referring to a scene depicting the beheading of Marie Antoinette.
After the ceremony, opening ceremony artistic director Thomas Joly deflected attention from the “Last Supper” reference, saying it was not his intention.
Le Philippe responded to criticism of the scene with a mixture of humor and sadness.
“These words come from someone who wasn’t on the guest list. We all got to laugh together. It’s sad, to be honest,” they said.
InterLGBT president James Lepellier took a more cautious stance, arguing that France still has a long way to go on inclusivity.
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“We know that the LGBTQ community in France is far from what was shown at the ceremony. Society still has a lot of progress to make regarding transgender people. It’s terrible that you have to go to court to legally change your identity,” Lepellier said.
He also highlighted the gap in acceptance, saying the community is not visible at other official ceremonies and “it’s hard to have your voice heard.”
“If you watched the opening ceremony last night you would think that this was how it should be, but it wasn’t. France was trying to show how it should be, not how it is,” he said.
France’s Drag and Voguing Nightclub Scene
The opening ceremony comes amid a resurgence of France’s drag and voguing nightclub scene. Founded in 1946 amid the ruins of World War II, the cabaret club Madame Arthur is one of the oldest continuously operating LGBTQ+ theatres in the world. It opened at a time when Europe was just beginning to come to terms with the widespread murders of members of the queer community during World War II and is currently undergoing a major renaissance.
Drag isn’t just entertainment: For many French minority communities who feel alienated by tensions arising from divisive politics and the scars of anti-same-sex marriage protests a decade ago, drag is an expression of rebellion. For many black and Arab gay youth, especially those from Paris’ less affluent, more religiously conservative suburbs, and others who feel disconnected from French society, voguing and drag events are safe spaces where they can express their identities without fear of retribution.
Despite the backlash, Le Philippe believes the opening ceremony will ultimately transcend the controversy.
“The show’s message is freedom and a good postcard for France,” they concluded.
Thomas Adamson, The Associated Press
Associated Press writer Jon Lester contributed to this report.
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