The Opening Ceremony Theme Has Historical Roots

After four years of waiting, the Summer Olympics are finally here once more. The opening ceremony officially kicks off the games on Friday night in Rio de Janeiro, beginning the three weeks of fierce competition. Expected to be quite memorable, the opening ceremony theme for the Rio Olympics will intertwine the history of Brazil with the current state of the country. Additionally, there will be a special focus on the directors' vision of the country and what it could be the in future. Brazilian film director Fernando Meirelles, who is serving as one of the four creative directors of this year's opening ceremony, described the theme:

We don't have high culture. Of course we have some pianists, some maestros and some orchestras, but that's not us. We come from the roots. The beauty of Brazil comes from the roots.

Due to a recent economic downturn in Brazil, as well as the country's continual human development, this year's ceremony may not be the extravagant affair it has been in years past. Meirelles said he seriously took the country's economic situation into consideration when designing the festivities. The budget for the event is only about 10 percent of what was spent on the opening ceremony in London four years ago, a reported $41.5 million. Meirelles explained that the money could be better spent elsewhere.

[I would be] ashamed to waste what London spent in a country where we need sanitation; where education needs money. So I'm very glad we're not spending money like crazy.

Despite the low budget, sources still promised viewers a fun and exuberant party on Friday night. One Olympic insider promised the Daily Mail that there will be women doing the samba. According to the insider, 6,000 volunteer dancers will show off the history of the Brazilian people, including special depictions of the rainforest, the famous Carnival festival, and, of course, Brazil's penchant for dancing. The source said:

There will be lots of nearly naked women doing the samba. The costumes have been designed to show off as much flesh as possible which means as little material as they can get away with.

Some footage from the ceremony already leaked earlier this week, indicating that it will feature some pretty cool pyrotechnics as well as the dance troupe. According to The Mirror, the show will include 2,000 light guns, over 6,600 pounds of fireworks and 109 projectors to make the performance come to life. There's also this mysterious net which was leaked on Facebook — it's totally unclear what it will be used for, so Friday night can't come fast enough.

The opening ceremony is one of the best nights of the entire Olympics, and it should be not only fun, but actually informative this year. Parts of the ceremony are expected to focus on issues facing the developing world, a poignant topic as this is the first time a developing country is hosting the Olympics. This year's opening ceremony should bring a special perspective to the games that viewers don't often get to see, so make sure to tune in Friday night to learn about Brazil and kick off the Olympics the right way.