There were multiple solemn tributes to COVID-19 victims around the world, as well as the health workers who have been fighting the disease. The non-obtrusive nature of the various cultural references reflects how organizers felt the need to be respectful of the gravity of the ongoing pandemic, while at the same time signal that Japan was ready to reopen. Such pop culture signposts were what many expected of the event, especially after then-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe appeared dressed as Mario at the closing ceremony for the 2016 Rio Olympics. Each team was welcomed to its spot in the stadium by masked men and women sporting grayscale-colored costumes patterned with screentones, as if they were manga characters brought to life. Viewers recognized songs from series like Final Fantasy, Chrono Trigger, and Kingdom Hearts. As each team entered the stadium, waving to empty seats, they were accompanied by symphonic renditions of music from popular video games. The most playful use of Japanese culture came during the Parade of Nations. For example, Ichikawa Ebizō XI, a member of a venerated family of kabuki actors, appeared in traditional attire to perform with jazz/prog rock fusion pianist Hiromi Uehara, showcasing a modern mixture of millenarian tradition with the avant-garde. After the Parade of Nations, the back half of the ceremony featured more specific cultural signposts, but with twists to project an image of Japan different from stereotypes. It was a quiet, minimalist, beautifully choreographed evocation of the sensation of being “apart together.” Further proceedings included song and dance tributes to Japan’s queer community, the history of Japanese craftsmanship, and victims of both COVID-19 and the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake. The first segment began with boxer Arisa Tsubata running on a treadmill, alone in the stadium, with shifting patterns projected onto the floor beneath him, slowly connecting him to others similarly training alone - a figurative depiction of how athletes have had to work during quarantine. So how did the ceremony embody that proclaimed intention? It was mostly a sequence of symbols and metaphors instead of a platform to show off Japanese culture.
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