Hydro to host Commonwealth Games 2026 opening ceremony as organisers seek 700 volunteers
The Hydro will host the Commonwealth Games 2026 opening ceremony on 23 July (ET), with organisers recruiting around 700 volunteer cast members to join dancers, theatre performers and musicians. The ceremony will be staged inside the arena in Glasgow’s Hydro rather than an outdoor stadium to create what organisers call a “Clyde-built experience for the world, ” aiming to bring the audience closer to the action. Auditions are scheduled for 9-10 May (ET) and the application deadline is 24 April (ET), though that deadline could be brought forward if demand is high.
Commonwealth Games 2026: Volunteers and creative team
The volunteer cast call covers a wide range of roles: high-energy dance numbers, scripted performances, storytelling moments, symbolic community sequences and athlete welcome duties. Minimum age is 16 and no previous experience is required; organisers invite “passionate people from all backgrounds” to apply to “showcase the city’s local communities and cultures. ” The creative team named to deliver the show includes show and staging director Roxana Cole, choreographer Emily Jane Boyle and costume designer Carole Millar, with Louisa Mahon overseeing the ceremonies programme in her role at Glasgow 2026.
Details of the Hydro ceremony
This will be the first Commonwealth Games opening ceremony staged in an arena rather than an outdoor stadium, and organisers describe the production as “being designed to be experienced, not observed. ” The Hydro will also host netball during the sporting programme. Glasgow 2026 will run from 23 July to 2 August (ET), featuring more than 3, 000 athletes from 74 nations and territories competing across 10 sports and six Para sports.
Immediate reactions from organisers
Louisa Mahon, Chief Marketing and Ceremonies Officer at Glasgow 2026, said: “We’re working with some incredible female creatives to build a ceremony that’s bold, unmistakably Glasgow and unlike anything the Commonwealth Games has produced before. ” Mahon added the arena setting will allow a show “that is being designed to be experienced, not observed. “
Dominic McKay, Chief Executive of the SEC, said the venue is “built for moments like the Commonwealth Games 2026 Opening Ceremony” and described the SEC as a “passionate partner committed to delivering an extraordinary Games for Glasgow and the entire Commonwealth. “
Quick context
The Hydro is part of the Scottish Event Campus and is one of the four named Games venues. When the Games were last in the city in 2014, the opening ceremony was held at Celtic Park.
What’s next
Casting is open now with the 24 April (ET) application deadline in place and auditions set for 9-10 May (ET) in Glasgow; organisers warn the deadline could move earlier if applications surge. Over the coming weeks the creative team led by Louisa Mahon, with Roxana Cole, Emily Jane Boyle and Carole Millar, will finalise staging and call times as the city prepares for the Commonwealth Games 2026 opening night on 23 July (ET), ahead of the wider Games running to 2 August (ET).
