Eurovision second rehearsals: Day 1 review

Today marks my first ever day with Eurovision press accreditation and needless to say it’s been a long one.

Technical difficulties befell the online press stream this morning and we were left without coverage of Albania’s rehearsal until the end of the day (and even then we only got a repeat of the first run through).

Our day began with Latvia’s second rehearsal, with Citi Zēni bringing the energy to the hall. I couldn’t help notice the black hole in the middle of the stage, but this was an issue faced by multiple songs and not one of Latvia’s making (though ultimately everyone will have to adapt). 

Somehow, one of Citi Zēni’s members has got away with pretty openly singing ‘being green is sexy as f***’ in the performance, so it will be worth seeing if someone from the EBU has a quiet word and makes sure that doesn’t happen next Tuesday.

All in all, it was a good rehearsal from Latvia but qualification, especially from this slot, may remain elusive. Latvia have shortened into 1.9 in the qualification market, which still feels too short given the jury/running order risks associated with this entry.

Lithuania came next and Monika Liu delivered a solid vocal performance, as she always does. Unfortunately the staging of this entry looks like a step back on the Lithuanian national final and the absence of the usual spark in Monika’s eyes suggested that she wasn’t happy with the staging, either. This could have looked enticing and trippy with the spinning sun but its malfunction left ‘Sentimentai’ feeling quite static. While the lights work well for the first 30 seconds, helping Monika Liu sparkle, there was just a black void after that. Lithuania’s qualification hopes are on a knife edge.

Switzerland’s staging was the best of the opening three acts, with some nice projection effects on the side of the screen and on Marius Bear’s face throughout the performance. Marius himself didn’t fare as well. The vocals in ‘Boys Do Cry’ were too throaty and not delicate enough for the song, with the performance likely to invite karaoke comparisons if not sharpened up. With a stronger performer there would be more than enough here to go through, but the strong jury performance Switzerland needs to take them to Saturday’s final still looks a tough ask.

Slovenia’s lighting and camera work were both quite poor in the first run through, but improved throughout. The delegation definitely picked the best 30 seconds of the song to release in their YouTube clip, with the 360° shot of the band members standing around the disco ball the highlight of the performance, adding depth to the stage. However, this was another entry that looked like a step backwards on their national final and qualification is probably out of reach, as the odds indicate. It still feels a bit amateurish and ‘sixth form band’.

The hot favourites to win the contest, Ukraine, followed after a break. In terms of staging, there was a notable absence of blue and yellow until the very end of the performance, suggesting the EBU got what they wanted on that front. There were some changes from the national final performance, with shadow effects of the band members appearing on the stage floor and giant Great Gatsby-esque eyes appearing on the LED screen. It took me until the last run through to realise that these eyes were crying yellow tears which then flowed onto the floor of the stage, so this might go over the heads of many viewers.

Kalush Orchestra brought a much-needed shot of energy to the post-Latvia run and ‘Stefania’ will come alive more with the crowd, but there is just no way this should be an odds-on favourite to win the contest. While Ukraine’s televote support is not in doubt, the song still needs a healthy jury score to go over the line, and in any other year this would be buried by the juries. Ukraine’s success rests on the extent to which external events will affect the rankings of the ‘music industry professionals’; taking a chance on this is a massive risk at the price Ukraine is at in the odds.

Aside from the other shortcomings of this entry, there’s no ‘winning moment’ here either. I remain unchanged in thinking this will fall short in the final.

Bulgaria followed Ukraine and somehow brought the best staging of the day so far. There were no concerns whatsoever about the black void in the stage, and this ended up working pretty well as an arena performance with some really good camera shots used. While the song is, in my view, perhaps the worst of the year, there is an audience for this kind of thing outside the Eurovision fandom. It’s not gonna be in my qualifiers list, but stranger things have happened.

S10 took to the stage next for the Netherlands and delivered a strong rehearsal. Her vocals were the best I’ve heard from her this Eurovision season, especially on the big notes, and there were some great shots at the beginning of the performance as she standing on a diamond-shaped box emitting rays of white light (think Sanna Nielsen). While the second run through gave me the first goosebumps moment of the day, I do also have to discuss the downsides here: the staging felt too static in parts and my worries about the song’s televote appeal mean I’m not ready to elevate this to contender status.

Correctly, the Netherlands shortened in the outright market after the rehearsal, but has now drifted back out again after the release of the 30 second rehearsal clip on YouTube, which doesn’t really work well when stripped from the context of the rest of the performance.

The Netherlands couldn’t have asked for a better two songs to stand out against, with Moldova following S10. ‘Trenulețul’ felt a little lethargic compared to previous Zdob și Zdub entries, with some of the dance moves feeling more like they’d come from a pensioners’ water aerobics class than the kind of high-energy Eurovision performance that we’re used to from them. There was also a huge missed opportunity here staging-wise, with the notable absence of a train on stage (which I’m pretty sure the band said would appear, so not sure what happened there). At 1.49, this is still too short in the qualification market.

Portugal’s rehearsal was delayed due to a positive Covid test for one of the backing singers, so I’ll come back to that later.

Next up was Croatia, who didn’t manage to get an issue-free run through until the final attempt. Pre-rehearsals I had this down as a qualifier, but I’ve changed my mind after today. The stage looks very plain, with the same blue colour used throughout the whole performance, and Mia Dimšić is obstructed by the presence of three dancers in nude bodysuits that only detract from the overall package (Azerbaijan’s 2015 stage show immediately came to mind). This felt really messy and perhaps understandably, Croatia ended up in last place in the day’s press poll.

Denmark came next and did all that they could with the song. The rehearsal was solid from the beginning, with effective intimate camerawork in the first minute and some colourful and well-lit staging from then on, alongside added pyro on the final run through. This looked pretty much unchanged from their national final performance. Vocals throughout were good, so this should pick up some jury points at least. The televote is the main sticking point here, and it still doesn’t look like it’s going to end up in the top ten on that side of the vote. Denmark’s qualification chance increased after today – perhaps just because they stayed still while others went backwards – though it remains an outside possibility.

Following Reddi was Austria, who showcased the heaviest use of backing vocals I think I’ve ever seen at Eurovision. The Austrian team decided to try and make up for Pia Maria’s vocal issues by effectively having a backing singer perform the entire track alongside her. In the rare parts where Pia performed by herself, she was left exposed. 

I had laid Austria to qualify prior to today, and I felt vindicated after this rehearsal. Maybe televoters won’t be as bothered, but I just can’t see how the juries wouldn’t rank this down given the noticeably heavy use of backing vocals.

Up next was Greece, delivering a much-needed show of strength after four middling entries. The vocal effects from the studio version were replicated well in a live setting, and Amanda Tenfjord was vocally great throughout all three performances. There were some cool staging elements in this, too. During the first chorus, the camera zoomed out as Amanda sung the long note and stopped as soon as her vocals did, creating a Carrie-esque effect where she had full control of the camera. Likewise, the blue chairs on stage are a great choice — in parts they are shot from above and ‘leak’ onto the LED floor, turning into water. Water was a big theme in this performance and Greece made the best use of the stage’s water features of any rehearsal. In the final chorus, Amanda is shot from low down, with the pointed stage and flowing water almost creating the illusion that she is stood on the front of a boat.

Greece gave me another goosebumps moment, but the final chorus didn’t quite pack the punch I had hoped for. It really could have done with a wind machine, however cliché that might have been. The outright market overreacted to the rehearsal, pushing Greece into the high teens briefly, though they have since settled around 30.

For a variety of reasons, this feels like the biggest threat to Ukraine in this semi-final, but doesn’t feel like a contender for the overall win.

Portugal was our final live rehearsal of the day, and it was certainly worth the wait. The positive test result for one of Maro’s backing vocalists turned out to be a blessing in disguise —  her removal from the circle of performers in the second and final run throughs really made the staging feel more open and inviting to the audience. Each performance was better than the last, and with the smoke machine activated for the final run through, ‘Saudade, saudade’ was elevated even further with some gorgeous low-angle shots. This is pure class and deserves to do very well, so I was somewhat surprised that the outright market remained unmoved after the rehearsal.

Finally, we were treated to a replay of Albania’s rehearsal that we didn’t get this morning, so thanks to the EBU for arranging that for the online press. While the performance wasn’t as messy and bare as the 30 second YouTube clip made out, it still left a lot of room for improvement. The Albanian team’s decision to use a wide shot for the dance break is a strange one which any producer worth their salt would be sure to change before Tuesday’s semi-final. Likewise, Ronela Hajati’s choice of foot attire doesn’t really fit with the vibe of this entry and ought to be changed. Unfortunately, we only got to see the first run through of ‘Sekret’ so I don’t know how much the performance was tightened in the subsequent performances.

The market has drifted on this and Albania is out to a 76% chance of qualification (down from 85% pre-rehearsals).

Most impressive of the day

Portugal

Most disappointing of the day

Croatia

Image of Maro by Pedro Pina / RTP.