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The 2026 Winter Olympics<\/a> begins with the Opening Ceremony<\/a> on February 6. To kick things off, several beloved celebrities will perform, delivering all the glitz and glamour one would hope for from an internationally fashionable and historically important city like Milan.\u00a0<\/p>\n In fact, celebrations and special moments will happen throughout the Italian city and at the hilltop ski resort town of Cortina d’Ampezzo, which will also host many of the competitions this year. At the center of it all is San Siro Stadium. Host country Italy is bringing out its best and brightest stars for the event, so be sure to tune in to see what everyone will inevitably be talking about.<\/p>\n RELATED:\u00a0Watch the 2026 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony Live on February 6 Here<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Both NBC<\/strong> and Peacock<\/a> <\/strong>will have full, on-the-ground coverage of the ceremony<\/a>, led by\u00a0sports broadcaster Terry Gannon and veteran Olympic journalist\u00a0<\/strong>Mary Carillo, with commentary from Olympic snowboarding champion Shaun White.<\/p>\n “I’m so excited to be part of the Opening Ceremony for the Milan Cortina Olympics,” White said\u00a0in a statement<\/a>. “The Olympics have been such a huge part of my life, and to return in this new role\u00a0\u2014 celebrating the athletes, the energy, and the incredible backdrop of Italy\u00a0\u2014 is truly an honor. I know what that moment means when the world is watching, and I can’t wait to help bring that magic to everyone at home.”<\/p>\n Beyond all of the Olympic traditions, you can also expect to see a number of performers at the Opening Ceremony. Read on to find out who’s set to take the stage.\u00a0<\/p>\n Internationally renowned tenor singer Andrea Bocelli<\/a> is one of the most famous Italian artists alive today, and a perfect fit for the epic pageantry of the Opening Ceremony. He previously performed at the Closing Ceremony<\/a> last time Italy hosted the Games, in Turin in 2006.<\/p>\n “I believe that singing at an Olympic Opening Ceremony is a great honour and a deeply moving experience, especially for someone like me who has always loved sport,\u201d Bocelli said in an interview<\/a> with Olympics.com, adding that he felt “indescribable emotion” when he last performed in 2006.\u00a0<\/p>\n “I\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0think what matters most is the emotion I can leave behind, but rather the emotion that the Olympic Games and sport itself can create,” Bocelli continued. “Sport\u00a0in itself embodies\u00a0extremely important values,\u00a0values that\u00a0I believe should take root in the hearts of everyone, young and old alike.”<\/p>\n RELATED:<\/strong>\u00a0Peacock Unveils Game-Changing Features for the 2026 Winter Olympics<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n The American diva was the first performer announced<\/a> as part of the Opening Ceremony line-up, and the\u00a0local Olympic committee<\/a>\u00a0explained why she was chosen in a statement, saying, “Mariah Carey fully represents the emotional atmosphere that accompanies the run-up to the Games. Music is a universal language that attracts different stories and sensibilities, and intertwines with the opening ceremony’s theme of harmony.”<\/p>\n RELATED:\u00a0<\/strong>Every 2026 Winter Olympics Commentator: Meet NBC Sports’ Milan Cortina Broadcast Team<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n One of the most famous leading men of modern Italian cinema, Favino is also recognizable stateside for his roles in blockbusters like World War Z <\/i>and Angels & Demons<\/i>. He also recently starred alongside Angelina Jolie in the film Maria<\/i>.<\/p>\n On Instagram<\/a>, Favino said in a teaser trailer for the Opening Ceremony, “We will tell a story of armonia [harmony] and enchant the world with an extraordinary event that will go down in history.\u201d<\/p>\n According to Olympics.com<\/a>, Favino’s contribution will be\u00a0a “powerful, emotionally charged interpretation\u201d of an existing script, accompanied by a “deeply immersive” original composition written and performed by\u00a0violinist Giovanni Zanon.\u00a0<\/p>\n After working steadily as an actress in Italy,\u00a0Sabrina Impacciatore<\/a>\u00a0broke through to an international audience in 2022 with a role as a hotel manager in\u00a0The White Lotus<\/i>. She now stars as Esmerelda, the unserious interim editor-in-chief of a local news outlet on Peacock’s\u00a0The Paper<\/i><\/a>,\u00a0<\/i>a character she told TODAY<\/i><\/a> she is intentionally playing as “a bit crazy.”\u00a0<\/p>\n With a career spanning over 30 years and having sold millions of albums, Pausini is one of the most successful Italian pop stars alive. She primarily sings in Italian and Spanish, and has won multiple Latin Grammy Awards. Her song “lo s\u00ec,” written by Diane Warren, was used in the 2020 film The Life Ahead starring Italian icon Sophia Loren, and won Best Original Song at the Golden Globes.<\/p>\n Chinese pianist Lang Lang is considered one of the most famous and talented musicians of the instrument alive, and has collaborated with pop artists and played for monarchs and heads of state. His albums have sold millions of copies<\/a>, and he’s even played in a previous Olympics Opening Ceremony, the 2008 Games in Beijing. An international icon and philanthropist, Lang was named\u00a0 Messenger of Peace by the Secretary General of the United Nations in 2013 and has served as a UNICEF Global Goodwill Ambassador since 2006.<\/p>\n During the Opening Ceremony, Italian mezzo-soprano Cecilia Bartoli will perform with Lang Lang. Born into a musical family, she has been an opera singer since her teenage years, and is now also the artistic director of the Salzburg Whitsun Festival and the director of the\u00a0Op\u00e9ra de Monte-Carlo\u00a0in Monaco, per The New York Times<\/a>. Bartoli is the recipient<\/a> of 17 Grammy nominations and five wins.<\/p>\n The ceremony organizers teased on Instagram<\/a>, “Cecilia Bartoli embodies the very essence of the great Italian operatic heritage…her intense and instantly recognizable voice will mark one of the evening\u2019s most evocative moments, where music becomes memory, identity, and a shared vision.\u200b”<\/p>\n Chart-topping rapper Ghali has also been added to the opening ceremony line-up. He is a truly multicultural artist, with both Italian and Tunisian heritage, and he raps in Italian, French and Arabic, per Olympics.com<\/a>. With millions of online followers and hits like “Pizza Kebab,” “Habibi,” “Jennifer” and “Ninna Nanna,” he’s one of the most exciting and modern stars set to perform.<\/p>\n NBC<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0Peacock<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0will both broadcast full coverage of the Opening Ceremony on February 6\u00a0beginning at\u00a02 p.m. ET<\/strong>, with primetime coverage kicking off at 8 p.m. ET.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\nAndrea Bocelli<\/h2>\n
Mariah Carey\u00a0<\/h2>\n
Pierfrancesco Favino<\/h2>\n
Sabrina Impacciatore<\/h2>\n
Laura Pausini<\/h2>\n
Lang Lang<\/h2>\n
Cecilia Bartoli<\/h2>\n
Ghali<\/h2>\n
How to watch the 2026 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony<\/h2>\n