Organizers for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games are looking for 4,500 dancers and performers and athletes to volunteer in the televised performances for the opening and closing ceremonies for the games.

"We're looking for people with all types of performance skills and levels of ability who want to play a part in sharing Canada with the world," David Guscott, the executive vice-president of celebrations and partnerships with the 2010 Olympic organizing committee (VANOC), told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) Tuesday.

The ceremonies inside BC Place in Vancouver will be broadcast around the world and are intended to tell the story of Canada to an estimated television audience of 3.5 billion.

"Previous experience isn't a requirement, but taking quick action is. This is the one and only call for participation," he said.

VANOC is also looking for about 1,000 volunteers to help backstage at the ceremonies. Applications can be filed online at the VANOC website.

Auditions will start in May and candidates will be notified this summer if they have been successful. Rehearsals will begin in November and continue until the Feb. 12 opening of the Games, including over the December holiday period.

Rehearsals will be held twice a week and each volunteer performer will rehearse for more than 100 hours to prepare for their role.

It will be the first time in Olympics history that the ceremonies will be staged at an indoor venue, CBC said.

The ceremonies are being produced by Australian David Atkins, who also produced the ceremonies for the Summer Games in Sydney in 2000.

Canada's federal government is spending 20 million Canadian dollars (16 million U.S. dollars) to cover the majority of the cost.

(Xinhua News Agency March 4, 2009)