Christine and the Queens delivers queer excellence at Paralympic opening ceremony: ‘Beyond iconic’
Christine and the Queens delivered queer excellence at the Paris 2024 Paralympic opening ceremony. (Marco Mantovani/Getty Images)
Christine and the Queens served up queer excellence at the opening ceremony for the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, with fans calling the performance “beyond iconic”.
The opening ceremony took place on Wednesday (28 August) ahead of the first sporting action on Thursday.
The ceremony’s queer artistic director, Thomas Jolly, had promised it would be a “spectacle [to] showcase the Paralympic athletes and the values they embody”.
Taking to the main stage, and dominating it, at the Place de la Concorde was French singer Chris, best-known by his stage name Christine and the Queens.
He performed a version of French superstar Edith Piaf’s famous “Non, je ne regrette rien”, orchestrated by Victor le Masne, and a rendition of Patrick Hernandez’s disco classic “Born to be Alive.”
Social media was flooded with praise for the singer.
One person wrote that the performance was “beyond iconic”, while others lauded the choice of tracks.
Others called the set, made extra queer by rainbow lighting and a firework display, amazing and incredible.
A fan who watched live, marked out the singer’s “stunning suede red suit”, for special attention.
In 2022, Chris talked about his gender identity, and during a three-minute TikTok video said: “I’ve been a man for a year now – a little more officially in my family and in my relationship. It is a long process.”
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