The first full dress rehearsal of the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics was held in secrecy at the Bird’s Nest stadium.

The opening ceremony is set to go for three and a half hours.

A tribute to the victims of the Sichuan earthquake will be part of the ceremony. Rain is still a concern with a 50 per cent chance that the heavens will open during the day. Plans to build a retractable roof were canceled, so many of the seats in the lower deck remain out in the open.

Zhang Yimou is director-in-chief of the ceremony and has been working on the ceremony for three years.