Activist Barbara Butch depicted Jesus at Olympics opening ceremony

The woman at the centre of a controversial performance during the opening ceremony for the Paris 2024 Olympics has been revealed to be a DJ, producer, and self-described ‘love activist’ called Barbara Butch.

Some Christians were vocal about their discomfort over the stunt: a parody of the Last Supper – the famous biblical scene of Jesus Christ and his twelve apostles sharing a last meal before the crucifixion.

The artistic interpretation, which included a group of drag queens and a transgender model, as well as French actor and singer Phillippe Katerine, prompted some to accuse organisers of creating a ‘woke‘ parody of the iconic painting by Leonardo da Vinci.  

Models, dancers, fashion icons and drag queens from the host nation took part in the scene, gathering on a bridge over the capital’s river around a table, which also doubled as a catwalk.

At the centre was Barbara, who donned a halo-style crown and fitted blue and silver ensemble as she stood in front of her DJ equipment surrounded by several drag queens and dozens of dancers and performers

A fashion show which showcased clothing designed by some of France‘s most promising young designers took centre stage, as those seated on either side performed slick choreography.

And one of the most impressive pieces was the crown worn by Barbara, which was actually a custom-made headset which incorporated a pair of headphones.

The piece was created by multidisciplinary artist Flavio Juan Nunez and designer Laurent Tijou.

It was crafted from  natural silver chromed leather, wood, and Swarovski crystals, according to an Instagram post shared by Barbara.

In the post, she added that the tableau had been created to ‘celebrate Love, inclusivity, diversity through music & dance to unite all of Us [sic]’. 

However, while there were fans of the performance, it split opinion, with some organisations publicly criticising the segment.

Among them was the Catholic church in France, with the Conference of French bishops releasing a statement saying: ‘This ceremony has unfortunately included scenes of derision and mockery of Christianity, which we very deeply deplore.’

Additional critique came from further afield, with US Catholic Bishop Robert Barron sharing his thoughts via video.

In a clip about the performance, he said: ‘I love the Olympics, so I turn on the opening ceremony of the Olympics. And what do I see now? It’s in Paris, France, a city I love, I spent three years as a doctoral student there.

‘I see this gross mockery of the last supper and I won’t describe it any further.

‘France felt evidently as it’s trying to put its best cultural foot forward, that the right thing to do is to mock this very central moment in Christianity where Jesus at his last supper gives his body and blood in anticipation of the cross.’

He continued: ‘It’s presented through this gross or flippant mockery. France which used to be called the oldest daughter of the church.

‘France has sent Catholic visionaries all over the world. France whose culture and I mean the honouring of the individual, in human rights and of freedom is grounded very much in Christianity.

‘It [France] felt the right thing to do was to mock the Christian faith.

‘Now a question I would pose, and we all know the answer to it, would they ever have dared mock Islam in a similar way. Would they ever have dreamed mocking in this gross and public way, a scene from the Qu’ran. And as I say we all know the answer.

‘What’s interesting here is this deeply secularist, [post-modern society knows who its enemy is, they’re naming them, and we should believe them, because this is who they are.

‘But furthermore we Christians, Catholics, should not be sheepish. We should resist, we should make our voices heard.’

An unexpected source of criticism was Tesla and SpaceX owner Elon Musk, who claimed that the Last Supper depiction was ‘extremely disrespectful to Christians’, adding that: ‘Christianity has become toothless.’

However, the performers are not without fans as well as critics: Barbara Butch, who was at the centre of the performance, has more than 70,000 followers on Instagram.

Posting about the segment on the platform, she shared an image of herself in her costume, and wrote: ‘Hi my name is Barbara Butch, I m a Love activist , DJ and producer based in Paris. 

‘My aim is to unite people, gather humans & share love through music for all of Us to dance & make our hearts beat at unison! Music sounds better with all of Us!’ 

In addition to her work in music, Barbara (who is also known as Leslie Barbara Butch) is an activist for causes including lesbian rights and fat acceptance – as part of her fat acceptance work, she made the short film Extra Large.

And in 2020, she she posed naked on the cover of French cultural magazine Télérama. The cover line read: ‘But why do we reject fat people?’ 

Her work has been recognised by the French Association of LGBTI Journalists: in 2021, she was honoured with its Out d’or 2021 (LGBTI personality of the year) award.

The Parisian-born personality, who used to perform under the name ‘Scratcheuse de gazon’) before returning to her given name) reportedly began her DJ career in Montpellier, where she played in bars.

She continued her career by returning to Paris in 2008, where she worked at venues including the Machine du Moulin Rouge and Rosa Bonheur among others.

Barbara has also appeared on television, as a guest celebrity judge in 2023, on French reality series Drag Race France.