Scenes From the Ceremony

Fireworks lit up the sky over the National Stadium in Beijing during the opening ceremony of the 2008 Olympic Games.
Photo: Doug Kanter for The New York Times

The ceremony included 15,000 performers and was directed by China‘s most famous film director, Zhang Yimou, whose films were once banned in China.
Photo: Doug Mills/The New York Times

The production focused in part on China‘s long history and its desire for goodwill with the rest of the world.
Photo: Phil Walter/Getty Images

The stadium, also known as the Bird‘s Nest, holds 91,000 spectators. The global television audience for the ceremony is expected to surpass four billion viewers.
Photo: Chang W. Lee/The New York Times

The ceremony cost tens of million of dollars to produce and unfolded as a grand mixture of Chinese culture and technology. It was punctuated by bursts of fireworks.
Photo: Daniel Dal Zennaro/European Pressphoto Agency

Drummers performed during the ceremony.
Photo: Chang W. Lee/The New York Times

The festivities included tributes to ancient calligraphy and the Chinese invention of paper, as well as other historical events.
Photo: Doug Mills/The New York Times

The production also included technological flourishes like a movable floor and actors floating on guidewires.
Photo: Doug Mills/The New York Times

The weather conditions when the ceremony began were a sweltering 90 degrees with 62 percent humidity.
Photo: Mike Hewitt/Getty Images

In the United States, the opening ceremony was not broadcast live. NBC has the rights to the Games and will broadcast the footage during prime-time Friday evening.
Photo: Doug Mills/The New York Times

Since 2001, when the city won its bid to stage the 2008 Games, the Beijing Olympics have been a national priority.
Photo: Chang W. Lee/The New York Times

After being lifted high above the floor of the stadium on a guidewire, and seeming to run in the air, former Chinese gymnast Li Ning lit the Olympic torch.
Photo: Doug Mills/The New York Times

The ceremony was filled with signature Chinese touches like the use of masses of people, working in unison into a grand spectacle centered on traditional Chinese history, music, dance and art.
Photo: Chang W. Lee/The New York Times

The United States Olympic team, with almost 600 members, trails only China in size. The Chinese delegation totals 639.
Photo: Doug Mills/The New York Times

Many of the people walking the streets near the Olympic Village were giddy and proud that China could show itself to the world.
Photo: Shiho Fukada for The New York Times

Fans celebrated the official beginning of the 29th Olympic games while they watched the opening ceremony on a big outdoor screen.
Photo: Shiho Fukada for The New York Times

"If we think this is only China‘s moment, it‘s a big mistake," the famed composer Tan Dun said. "It‘s the moment of the world."
Photo: Doug Mills/The New York Times