The Very Best Moments From the Opening Ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics

Jolly’s opening ceremony drew on all kinds of performing arts, stitching together musical phrases from The Phantom of the Opera, Les Misérables, Georges Bizet’s Carmen, and a thrilling set by the French heavy metal band Gojira at the Conciergerie. (Later on, in another engaging display of Paris’s cultural diversity, the rapper Rim’K, wearing a checkered jacket by Louis Vuitton, performed his song “King.”)

The teeming world of la danse was accounted for, too: As troupe of modern dancers splashed near the Notre Dame and acrobats flew over the Pont Neuf, Guillaume Diop—the first Black principal dancer at the Paris Opera Ballet—did a lyrical solo.

Aya Nakamura seizing the Pont de la Concorde

Aya Nakamura, wearing a feathery gold Dior Haute Couture mini, gave a rousing performance of her hit 2018 singles “Pookie” and “Djadja.” She was joined by a gaggle of dancers (also in Dior), as well as the Orchestre de la Garde républicaine.

Take a closer look at her dress below:

The Jeux d’eau in the rain