On day three of rehearsals for Eurovision 2021 the acts for the first half of semi final 2 began Monday evening in Australia! For press and fans it brings us one step closer to the finals and gives us an all important look at staging. As most can agree - entries can rise or demise once we get a good look at the full package being brought to the contest.
Check out how the last nine countries in semi final 1 did during the rehearsals yesterday here. Bringing the contest well and truly into the twenty-first century - Aussievision has the delight of being present in the press centre via internet stream. As part of the press centre we view the full performances as seen 'down the lens' as they will be seen on television. For Eurofans - you have access to the EBU official photo gallery and performance 'snippets' on the official Eurovision YouTube channel taken in the arena. The closing batch of rehearsals featured the first half of semi-final 2:
San Marino
Estonia
Czech Republic
Greece
Austria
Poland
Moldova
Iceland
Serbia
Now down to the nitty gritty - which entries rose, which dropped and which delivered essentially what we expected from the performances tonight:
Who rose
Greece: Stefania - ‘Last Dance'
Greece is back! Overall sticking to an 80's inspired theme, tying nicely with the song. Stefania looks like a superstar in her purple sparkling body suit. The staging is next level technologically pushing the boundaries in the contest. Lots of choreography and invisible dancers, with bright blue and pink graphics of a city skyline. A very surprising entry and amzing performance by Stefania!!
Austria - Vincent Bueno - 'Amen'
Wow another song that has been elevated tonight! With effective and striking staging with great vocals from Vincent. The very slender lighting arrangement elevates this performance. The dark stage with intense lighting really goes well with the song and its themes. Good camera work. Vincent has delivered a great performance!
Iceland: Daði og Gagnamagnið - '10 Years'
It was all rainbows, unicorns and the wind machine (so great to see!). The performance starts off in space. Characters from their video game feature in the background LED. The performance was GREAT with their green jumper costuming given an upgrade. The band held curved keyboard/guitars which they combine together and play. They may have been underrated but Iceland are back in the game!!
Delivered about what we expected
San Marino: Senhit - ‘Adrenalina'
It is a great show opener for semi final 2! Starting off with a Gaga-esque yet religious mask outfit in line with Senhit's Freaky Trip to Rotterdam videos she has produced over the last year. Do check them out! Some elements from the music video used, which is great to see. This performance has a lot going on, but in a way it works. No Flo Rida in the rehearsals today, another rapper is filling in his shoes. Great vocals from Senhit, backing vocals are strong. Overall very brand Senhit!!
Serbia: Hurricane - 'Loco Loco'
Hurricane delivered!! The women looked great in their black, yet shiny, outfits. Lots of choreography in this entry as we expected. The energy is high. Great use of the whole stage. The disco ball does make an appearance for a great moment.
Estonia: Uku Suviste - 'The Lucky One'
Simple overall performance from Uku that works. A lot of darkness with the focus on Uku and the LED backing with the moon looks great. Decent vocals it's only rehearsals though. A big improvement from Eesti Laul. The simple and dark staging may work very well for Uku after Senhit's very colourful performance.
Who dropped
Natalia Gordienko - 'Sugar'
We had very high expectations from Moldova after Natalia's epic music video for 'Sugar'. Great to see similar choreography to the music video, but it stops there. Natalia's performs predominantly on a rotation platform and thats about it. The LED visuals are impressive at the beginning but doesn't do anything extravagant. As a package its missing impact and creativity. Vocally there could be a great moment where Natalia holds a note at the end.
Czech Republic: Benny Cristo - 'Omaga'
Great overall look by Benny with his bleached hair and gold sparkling jacket. The staging is very much dependant on Benny carrying it through, he was holding back during rehearsals. He is joined by a few dancers. As a package it still needs a bit of work.
Poland: Rafał - 'The Ride'
Not sure where to start... The staging with the neon colours looks great and some of the choreography was nice. Another entry influenced by the 80's. Overall as a package the performance was messy. The vocals need a fair bit of improvement. There's still time until the semi final show.
Press poll result The ESCXTRA press poll result had some similarities with our take, but also some key differences. Members of the accredited press voted (including us) with this the final result:
Iceland - 78
Greece - 63
Serbia - 50
San Marino - 47
Austria - 31
Czech Republic - 11
Moldova - 11
Estonia - 6
Poland - 6
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