The 1986 film, 'Crocodile Dundee', was the inspiration for this frill neck lizard costume that appeared in the Closing Ceremony of the Sydney Olympic Games. Set in the Northern Territory, the film included scenes with many animals from Australia's far north and captivated worldwide audiences with its humour and outback scenery. Along with costumes of prawns, crocodiles and water buffalo, the frill neck lizard followed behind a float that carried the star of the film, Paul Hogan - this was part of a larger procession of Australian celebrities, called the 'Parade of Icons'. In an expression of Australian self-mockery, the animals were equipped with scooters, bikes, roller blades and unicycles, referring to the 'kangaroos on bikes' controversy that erupted at the Closing Ceremony of the Atlanta Olympic Games.

Designed by John King, the crocodile costume was made from fabric, cast rubber, stiffening wire and latex paint, and was assembled in 2000 at the Ceremonies Workshop at Eveleigh. The complete outfit included a head, body, unitard, gloves, shoe covers and a unicycle. A volunteer performer, Stephen Irvine, wore this particular example at the Closing Ceremony, reuniting it with the Sydney 2000 Games Collection some two years after the event.

The Closing Ceremony of the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games took place on Sunday, 1 October, at Stadium Australia, Homebush Bay. It included solemn formalities, an informal parade of athletes and a farewell party that took the form of an unregimented parade with floats that celebrated and often mocked aspects of Australian popular culture. The intention was to conduct the ceremony with decorum until the extinction of the Olympic flame, and then to unleash a party. The artistic director of the closing ceremony David Atkins explained: 'The athletes have finished competition, and are ready to party, and we have set about creating a party to end all parties. We have decided to invite everyone into our giant Australian backyard - fully equipped with Hills Hoists, barbecues, an eclectic mix of music, performers and all manner of Australiana. Australians have a tradition of throwing great parties, and this one will be imbued with a sense of fun, larrikinism and goodwill.' According to Ric Birch (speaking on Channel 7's 'Olympic Sunrise'), the Opening Ceremony was to represent Australia at large, but the Closing Ceremony was Sydney's show.

As the ceremony unfolded the proliferation of suburban images, such as Hills Hoists, blowflies, lifesavers and thongs, was treated with self-deprecating irony rather than cliché. The wit and quality of the 'Parade of Icons' - a gala of Australian celebrities - reflected the influence of the late Peter Tully and his experience as artistic director of the Sydney Mardi Gras. The 'pit chicks', for example, donned silver hot pants and stiletto shoes and carried giant eyelashes and mascara for the Priscilla Bus - a prop that celebrated the Australian film, 'Priscilla, Queen of the Desert', as well as local gay culture.

After Vanessa Amorosi's performance of 'Absolutely Everybody', the arena was transformed into a huge dance-floor as 960 ballroom dancing couples in fluorescent costumes danced the samba, tango and jive to the beat of John Paul Young. Accompanying the dancers, were 208 giant dancing feet and the incongruous assembly of oversized kewpie dolls.

The opening ceremony told a mythic story of nation-building that dwarfed individuals. It was evocative and subtle. The closing ceremony, however, celebrated personality, celebrity and attitude. Loud and brash, more like a rock concert than a profoundly theatrical event, it was an extravagant send-off - fun, festive, shamelessly excessive and, for an international audience, decidedly weird.

John King designed the frill neck lizard costume in 2000 as part of a broader suite that represented various animals from the Northern Territory. This theme was inspired by 1986 film, 'Crocodile Dundee'. The complete outfit consists of a head, body, unitard, gloves, shoe covers and a unicycle.

Tamara Ealey and Jill Paskins made the frill neck lizard costume in 2000 at the Ceremonies Workshop at Eveleigh. Cast in expandable foam rubber, the head was glued to the body and then shaped with a stiffening wire that formed the lizard frill. The head and frill were then covered with a fabric, resembling lizard skin, and painted with a latex-based paint. Made from urethane foam rubber, the body and tail were fitted for the performer and glued and sculpted into shape. They were covered with fabric and finished with a latex-based paint. A pair of domestic garden cotton gloves were coated with foam rubber, covered with fabric and painted.

A volunteer performer, Stephen Irvine, wore this costume in the Closing Ceremony for the Sydney Olympic Games on 1 October 2000. In September 2002, he had the costume reunited with the remaining Sydney 2000 Games Collection, including many other costumes that featured in the Parade of Icons.

Made for and owned by the Sydney Organising Committee for the Olympic Games and donated to the Powerhouse Museum after the Games.

Frill neck lizard costume, foam/stretch fabric/latex paint/wire, Paul Hogan float, Parade of Icons, Closing Ceremony for the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, designed by John King, made at the Ceremonies Workshop, Sydney 2000.

Frill Neck Lizard costume. The costume consists of a head and body made from foam rubber and painted with latex based orange / brown paint, a bodysuit made from brown stretch cotton with the legs and arms painted with brown latex based paint, gloves padded with foam and painted with brown latex paint and shoe covers shaped from foam to look like lizard feet and covered with brown latex based paint. The latex paint gives the costume a textured, scale like appearance.

made: 2000

2001/84/617D

2000