Miss World 2012 - Stage rehearsal in Ordos

The contestants react with delight but we’re saving the big reveal for the night of the contest

Rehearsals have hit the road! The contestants had their first glimpse of the Dongsheng Stadium, where the opening ceremony will be held tomorrow night. As they all walked out into the arena together for an Opening Ceremony rehearsal and caught sight of the stage where they will be performing, there was an outbreak of excited chatter.
Where five weeks ago there was nothing, there now stands a magnificent set that the highly skilled crew from Beijing Colors - the team who have worked on spectacular sets for the past five Miss World ceremonies - have worked around the clock to complete.

Contestants preparing for the rehearsal to begin

We spoke to the Managing Director of Beijing Colors to get the lowdown on what went into building the setting for this year’s Miss World, and here are some of the amazing facts we were given:

The timeframe

Work began on July the 5th, 2012 and finished on July 21st to be ready in time for the opening ceremony of the Miss World festival, and to give the girls time to rehearse. A staggering achievement when you see the sheer size of the project.

The man-power

One-hundred and fifty people from Beijing Colors worked on the construction of the set. They laboured day and night to adjust and examine the lighting and the video setup to make sure the show is as dazzling as possible.

The contestants getting familiar with the impressive set

The machinery

Up to 120 45-metre CM Electric hoists have been used and they had to be imported from the United States! At peak time, there were several forklifts in use, as well as 35 twenty-ton trucks for the transportation of the equipment. State-of-the-art facilities and equipment were installed, including 12 Barco HD30 projectors, 24 LED high-beam PG lights, 1,200sqm of LED HD screens, and high-quality speakers and lighting equipment. It outstrips the magnitude of previous finals in both the size of the stage and set, and also the quantity and quality of the equipment used.

The materials

The equipment in total weighed in at 700 tons. That included 16,000 Layhher truss structure pieces and around 1,000 metres of aluminium alloy truss. The total size of the ‘dune’ – as the set is referred to - is 6,000 sqm. Overall size of the guest seating area is 21,000 cubic metres. During the final show, the LED star cloth used will come in at 7,000 sqm. This is the first time in the industry that 1,300 sqm film is used to cover the big screen and also the first time video gain paints are used on 1,500 sqm of the surface of the ‘dune’. The Opening Ceremony’s set size is about 2,000 sqm. The final show covers around 9,000 sqm for the stage and seating area, with an audience of over 10,000.

Aranzazu, Spain's contestant, during rehearsals

The inspiration

There are two elements to the inspiration for the stage. Firstly, the the whole set is based around the traditional world view of the Mongolian culture and belief that both the sky and the earth are round. The main stage is round and so is the light box above the stage; they represent heaven and earth. Secondly, the inspiration comes from the grasslands and dunes of Inner Mongolia. They share the same features, such as a very smooth horizon. Therefore, the set is designed with an abstract ‘dune’ as the backdrop for the stage. The backdrop, combined with the big LED circular screen behind it and the four movable projector screens, creates a three-dimensional presentation. This makes for a very impressive stage effect.

Tapiwa from Botswana at the stadium and the contestants from Jamaica and Nigeria smile for the camera during a break in rehearsals

When the contestants perform their opening sequence on the 24 th July we are going to see China meet Miss World in one amazing show. Be sure not to miss it and check back here for more updates.































source: Missworld,