Preparations for the forthcoming Rugby World Cup in New Zealand have been hampered by the lack of ‘big burly’ volunteers for the opening ceremony.
With the start of the tournament in the Land of the Long White Cloud less than three months away, organisers are facing into something of a crisis with regard to the opening ceremony, with only half of the 1500 volunteers needed having come forward so far.
More specifically, they need big and burly men to participate and aren’t fussy in terms of what sort of performing skills they possess.
“You don’t have to be able to dance to be in this show as we need participants of all levels of ability to get involved. In particular we need lots of big burly blokes to represent New Zealand’s strong Rugby community,” said Shona McCullagh, who is a member of the creative team for the Opening Ceremony.
All-Blacks coach Graham Henry and his staff will doubtless not be happy with the news, as they are taking every step possible to ensure as little distraction as possible in New Zealand’s search for a first World Cup title since 1987, which also took place on home soil.
All-Black players have already been banned from using Twitter during a tournament in which they will be under serious pressure to perform, having bottled it in every World Cup since ’87 despite being overwhelming favourites on nearly every occasion.
The apparent reluctance of New Zealanders to get involved seems a mystery until you notice the demands being made by organisers. Have a look at the schedule below for those who will be involved in the opening ceremony.
“Although we cannot provide you with a rehearsal schedule now, we do know that participation will take a significant time commitment.
Rehearsals will occur on weeknights and weekends;
during the school holiday period;
up to two times a week from mid July to mid August 2011;
up to 4 times a week thereafter.
Leading up to the Opening Ceremony, several rehearsals in late August and September and then again for the Closing Ceremony in October 2011 will be all day. Consider that you may need to arrange time off from your job or school programme.”
What’s more, some patriotic natives are a little peeved at the fact that an Australian company has been undertaken with the task of recruiting the volunteers to make up the deficit.
The deadline for volunteering has been extended until Sunday, June 26, but with the tournament due to kick off on September 9, the clock is ticking.
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