Grand Egyptian Museum: What the opening ceremony revealed about the nation - As-salamu alaykum
As-salamu alaykum. For Mohamed Attia, the Grand Egyptian Museum's opening wasn’t just another show. It was the result of decades of visual storytelling brought together on one vast stage.
An architect by training and a leading production designer in Egypt, Attia has helped shape the look of many of the country’s major films and TV works over more than 25 years, working with well-known directors on titles that left a mark on local audiences. He says he was in charge of the project’s visual identity - building the world of the story from set design and locations to the atmosphere of every space.
That cinematic sense carried over into national events he’s worked on, like the Pharaohs’ Golden Parade and the Avenue of the Sphinxes. When planning for the museum opening began nearly two years ago, the same creative team was involved. The project moved through many design stages before becoming what millions saw on November 1.
Although the ceremony covered the museum plaza and surrounding grounds, Attia says the real challenge was restraint: making sure the spectacle supported the museum rather than stealing its attention. The stage stretched over 28,000 square metres and was made to feel like a natural extension of the site; even backstage was sunk below ground so guests could still see the museum, the obelisk and the distant pyramids.
“We were celebrating the museum, not competing with it,” he says. The stage design echoed the museum’s façade, using abstract triangular forms inspired by the pyramids. The idea was to show pride in Egypt’s history while also expressing a modern creative identity - to say that we are contemporary and deeply rooted at the same time.
Attia describes the hour-long performance as a single theatrical experience that linked stories of ancient builders, the Nile, Tutankhamun and Ramses with today’s artistic expression. Scenes flowed together in musical and visual harmony. One memorable moment showed Egyptian Olympians alongside young performers, which Attia felt captured the production’s message: a bridge between heritage and the future, showcasing the country’s new generation of talent.
Even with world leaders in attendance, the production wasn’t made to please them first. “They came to experience our culture,” he says. The aim was to move Egyptian and Arab audiences first - if they feel proud, the world will take notice.
The music mixed operatic elements with Egyptian instruments like the tabla and oud to create a dialogue between authenticity and modernity, mirroring the museum itself: contemporary architecture housing ancient heritage.
This rootedness guided recent cultural spectacles - the Golden Parade, the Avenue of the Sphinxes and now the museum opening - each trying to express Egyptian identity in a modern creative language. The event’s opening film even showed an orchestra performing in cities such as Kyoto, Rio, New York and Paris, symbolising how aspects of Egyptian heritage resonate globally. The Grand Egyptian Museum now gathers those cultural threads in one monumental home.
While filming at the old museum in Tahrir, Attia noticed many artefacts still there or in storage. The depth of Egypt’s heritage is astonishing, and now it can be displayed in a world-class way. He hopes the museum becomes both a tourism landmark and a place Egyptians truly embrace as their own. Personally, he wants it to stand with the great museums of the world but remain distinct: dedicated entirely to one civilisation and telling a continuous story of ancient Egypt.
May Allah bless efforts that preserve and honour our history, and may such projects inspire pride and learning among our communities.
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