2018 Commonwealth Games opening ceremony

About

The opening ceremony for the 2018 Commonwealth Games took place on the evening of Wednesday 4 April in the Carrara Stadium, Gold Coast. As mandated by the Commonwealth Games Charter, the proceedings of the ceremony combined the formal opening of the sporting event (including hoisting of the flags, parade of the athletes and welcome speeches) with an artistic performance to showcase the host nation's culture. The 2018 Games were formally opened by Charles, Prince of Wales. Jack Morton Worldwide was given the contract to produce the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2018 Commonwealth Games. The theme of the opening ceremony was Hello Earth and directed by David Zolkwer.

The ceremony began at 20:00 AEST and lasted almost three hours. It was watched by an estimated worldwide television of 1.5 billion. The principal sections of the artistic display represented Australia's Indigenous culture, Gold Coast's Surfers Paradise, wildlife and theme parks. A medley of Australian classics were played live by the Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Queensland Youth Orchestra and Gold Coast Youth Orchestra during the parade of nations. Popular Australian recording artists such as Christine Anu, Delta Goodrem, Katie Noonan and Ricki-Lee Coulter performed at the ceremony. The opening ceremony was seen as a tremendous success and worldwide praised.