KAZAN, July 8 (Itar-Tass) - The organising committee of Universiade-2013 in Kazan began preparations for the closing ceremony of the XXVII Student Games, which is due in the afternoon on July 17 at the Kazan Arena stadium, the capital city’s Mayor Ilsur Metshin told Itar-Tass on Monday.

The mayor refused to comment on the ceremony’s programme, saying it would be another surprise.

“The audience will be happy, as they will see a real youth drive with good energy, with different /from the one during the opening ceremony/ music and other decors and staging,” he added.

While speaking about the opening ceremony, which was taken with admiration by the participants and guests, Metshin said: “On July 6, we all felt pride for this country. The Universiade’s opening has demonstrated what Russia can do. We can not only prepare competitions, we can offer a world-class show.”

The closing ceremony, like the opening one, “is a hundred-percent Russian product,” the mayor said. “We have been preparing days and nights for two and a half years. The carcass of the Kazan Arena stage was made at a plant in Nizhnekamsk /city in Tatarstan/. And 95 percent of all actors were Tatar professionals. We also invited soloists and aerialists from Moscow, St. Petersburg.”

Metshin expressed gratitude to producer of the opening and closing ceremonies - composer Igor Krutoi, to director Alexei Sechenov and to choreographer Zhanna Shmakova.