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Beijing Betting on Three Tenors Concert to Boost its Olympic Bid
China is sparing no effort to ensure the Three Tenors' concert in Beijing this month will be a success, hoping the unprecedented performance will boost Beijing's chances of hosting the 2008 Olympic Games, officials said Thursday.
The concert featuring Luciano Pavarotti, Placido Domingo and Jose Carreras is scheduled to coincide with International Olympic Day on June 23 as China seeks to raise Beijing's image ahead of July 13, when the International Olympic Committee selects the winning city.
Beijing, Paris and Toronto are considered the three most promising candidates to host the Games.
"The three most promising candidate cities will all hold significant celebrations on that day. We're convinced that our Three Tenors concert in Beijing will definitely top all of them that day," said Chen Jixin, executive vice president of concert organizer China National Culture and Art Co. Ltd.
"If we can do it successfully, then we can prove to the rest of the world that China can host big events with no problems," she told a news conference.
The Three Tenors will also publicly state their support for China's Olympic bid on the night of their performance, their agent Tibor Rudas told reporters in April.
He said the tenors support Beijing because of China's excellent performance in the Sydney Games last year.
The concert is expected to be even more of a publicity coup for Beijing because it will be held in the former home of China's emperors, the Forbidden City, where access for big events is rarely granted.
More than 600 workers and the tenors' concert preparation team are working around the clock to build the stage and set up for the performance, Chen said.
The official tickets are made from special paper and contain a logo that is hard to duplicate.
"It's difficult for pirates to figure out how to replicate the tickets in such a short time," Chen said.
To protect the centuries old emperor's palace from damage, the stage and the areas set aside for the 30,000 audience will be elevated by layers of rubber and 20,000 square meters of special carpeting.
About half of the 30,000 tickets have been sold and Chen said she is confident the concert will be sold out despite tickets that are way beyond the means of the average Chinese citizen.
The cheapest ticket is US$60 and the priciest is US$1,600. The prices are set at that level to ensure the costs of the performance will be covered, Chen said.
But those who cannot afford the tickets can watch the performance at home as it will be broadcast live on national television.
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