Lady Gaga Kicks Off Paris Olympics Playing Piano and Singing Along Seine River

Lady Gaga delivered a dazzling performance of Zizi Jeanmaire’s “Mon Truc en Plumes” (“My Thing With Feathers”) as part of the opening of the 2024 Paris Olympics.

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Gaga, who had been spotted in the host city for the past few days, strutted down some steps along the Seine river as she paid homage to Jeanmaire, accompanied by a troupe of eight dancers carrying pink feather fans, then moved over to the piano to continue her performance before getting back on her feet for a razzle-dazzle finale.

Posting after her performance, Gaga wrote , “This is not the first time we’ve crossed paths. Zizi starred in Cole Porter’s musical ‘Anything Goes’ which was my first jazz release. Although I am not a French artist, I have always felt a very special connection with French people and singing French music — I wanted nothing more than to create a performance that would warm the heart of France, celebrate French art and music, and on such a momentous occasion remind everyone of one of the most magical cities on earth — Paris.”

Gaga explained that her costumes were custom-made by Dior and she had “studied French choreography that put a modern twist on a French classic. I rehearsed tirelessly to study a joyful French dance, brushing up on some old skills — I bet you didn’t know I used to dance at a 60s French party on the lower east side when I was first starting out.”

In addition to Gaga’s performance, the Olympics opening ceremony is featuring 85 boats carrying the Olympic athletes from each country on a four-mile parade along the Seine river — only a portion of which had passed through before the televised action shifted to the pop superstar.

This marks the first time Gaga has performed at the Olympics, with this brief but showy turn rivaling her 2017 SuperBowl Halftime Show in immediate global impact.

The song Gaga performed was made famous to U.S. audiences when Zizi Jeanmaire performed it on “The Ed Sullivan Show” on Jan. 10, 1965.

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Theater director Thomas Jolly, best known for the hit rock-opera musical “Starmania,” designed the epic opening show and brought together 3,500 actors, dancers and musical performers. Friday night’s ceremony is taking place outside of a stadium for the first time in history and showcases some of Paris’ iconic landmarks, including the Eiffel Tower.

As previously reported , Celine Dion is poised to also appear at the opening ceremony. It marks the pop legend’s first performance since halting her touring schedule and stepping away from the spotlight after being diagnosed with Stiff Person Syndrome in December 2022.

Next up for Gaga is the Venice Film Festival premiere of “Joker: Folie à Deux,” where she takes on the role of Harley Quinn opposite Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker.

She is also back in the studio working on her seventh album. Over recent months, Gaga has been teasing photos and posts about the upcoming release. “I can’t wait for you to hear what I’m working on,” Gaga wrote. “I am writing some of my best music in as long as I can remember.”

Watch the 1960s version of “Mon Truc en Plumes” that inspired Gaga’s performance, as done by Zizi Jeanmaire on the Ed Sullivan show, below:

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