While there was plenty to celebrate at the 2024 Olympic Opening Ceremony, Christians took issue with one particular section of the extravaganza.
In one moment of the hours-long parade, famed DJ Barbara Butch performed alongside a large group of drag queens (including Nicky Doll, the host of Drag Race France) and created a tableau in which all of them appeared to be seated behind a large, long table. Some viewers quickly drew comparisons between the tableau and Leonardo da Vinci’s iconic painting The Last Supper, which then drew ire from conservative Christians who called the performance disrespectful and even “blasphemous.”
One group who denounced the performance was the French Catholic Church’s conference of bishops, who described the moment as “scenes of derision and mockery of Christianity” and said that “our thoughts are with all the Christians from all continents who were hurt by the outrage and provocation of certain scenes.”
As the criticism was occurring online, the official X account for the Olympic Games shared some further photos from the performance for context, showing that the scene was meant to depict the feast of Dionysus, the Greek god of wine and revelry. “The interpretation of the Greek God Dionysus makes us aware of the absurdity of violence between human beings,” the statement read.
In an interview with the Associated Press, the show’s artistic director Thomas Jolly defended the tableau, saying that he wanted the performance to represent the “the right to love each other, as we want and with who we want.” “My wish isn’t to be subversive, nor to mock or to shock. Most of all, I wanted to send a message of love, a message of inclusion and not at all to divide.”
Olympics spokesperson Anne Descamps answered a question during a Sunday press conference about the backlash to the performance, saying that neither the International Olympic Committee (IOC) nor Jolly had any “intention to show disrespect to any religious group.” Instead, she added, “We really did try to celebrate community tolerance. Looking at the result of the polls that we shared, we believe that this ambition was achieved. If people have taken any offense we are, of course, really, really sorry.”
See the Olympic Games’ tweet regarding the controversial performance below:
