Paralympic Games 2012 embarked through the eyes of Stephen Hawking, a pioneer in overcoming the disability of motor neuron disease. The Paralympic Games are a celebration of undying spirit and resilience of the physically challenged participants.

The event salutes mankind’s ability to surpass life defying odds and rise above the challenges. The games began with Stephen Hawking’s narration in a pre-recorded voice saying, “Look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see. Be curious.”

The artistic directors of the show were over the moon to be amidst the great man who has path breaking discoveries to his name. They described the ceremony to be an ‘exquisite journey of discovery.’

The evening amalgamated into the night with a grand display of neon lit dancers around a giant umbrella. The event then recreated the Big Bang by a massive explosion of a giant ball of light on the stage. The dancers swayed and performed acrobatic acts to a faster version of Rihanna’s Umbrella song.

The show was christened as Enlightenment. The Paralympic Games imbibed some attributes from the recently conducted Olympics with the Bard of Avon being the similarity. The artists performed Shakespeare’s The Tempest with the core character Miranda played by 34-year old disabled actress Nicola Mile Wilden. Stephen Hawking and Miranda walked through a recreation of the garden where Isaac Newton discovered gravity.

In a tribute to the great scientist, Newton, the show created a feat of the biggest apple crunch as 60,000 people took a bite of an apple together. Sir Ian McKellen, an established Shakespeare actor also played The Tempest’s Prospero in the ceremony.

The scene that filled the audience with frenzy was a rendition of Ian Drury’s disability anthem Spasticus Autisticus. 4000 athletes from 164 countries are participating in the Paralympic Games.

The three hour display of courage and indomitable spirit came to a close with Joe Townsend, a Royal Marine Commando who lost both his legs after stepping on a landmine in Afghanistan, flying into the stadium on a zip wire from the 376 foot tall Orbit tower and lighting the flame to summarise the story of their conquest over the physical challenge.

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