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Review: Hera Björk dazzles Melbourne at skating gala Queen of the Iceland

Writer's picture: Liv WebsterLiv Webster

Photo Credit: Liv Webster (Left) & Melbourne Sports Photography (Right)
Photo Credit: Liv Webster (Left) & Melbourne Sports Photography (Right)

It's not often Aussies are treated to Eurovision artists on home soil and in a world first - we got to experience Hera Björk's phenomenal vocals in collaboration with some of Australia's most talented figure skating athletes. 


On Wednesday night Ice Skating Victoria put on a gala at Icehouse, Melbourne's premier skating venue. The unique and truly mesmerising combination was a fundraising event to assist rising star local talent and give young athletes a chance to perform live with the Queen of Iceland herself.


Talking to some of the talented young skaters before the gala, all of them echoed they'd never performed with a live vocalist before and having the opportunity to shine with Hera Björk was an exciting and new experience.


For anyone wondering - no, Hera didn't don a pair of ice skates herself and left that duty to the regulars of the rink.
For anyone wondering - no, Hera didn't don a pair of ice skates herself and left that duty to the regulars of the rink.

The first half of the evening jukeboxed classic Eurovision tunes with various skaters of all ages and experiences. We were then treated to Hera Björk tentatively making her way out onto a performance plinth on the ice (in a pair of heels no less) all whilst belting her recent Eurovision entry Scared of Heights. It made for quite a comical moment.


The evening ended with an electrifying performance of Je Ne Sais Quoi with Australian Junior Champion and International Athlete Vinceman wowing the crowd with an array of elements, including a well-placed cantilever.



All the athletes made their way onto the ice for Hera's heartwarming rendition of Whitney Houston's I Wanna Dance With Somebody, with the skaters dancing freely and enjoying the moment.


The event was a wonderful display of diversity within the ice skating community - something I see strongly also within the Eurovision fandom. VicSynchro skater Chenoa performed to Because You Can and shared similar sentiments:

"I love how inclusive Eurovision is, the fact that they included Australia in it, it just made me even happier to be part of the community. I see that in skating as well, everybody lifting each other up and looking out for each other and cheering each other on." -VicSynchro performer Chenoa

Regular viewers of figure skating would be familiar with the popularity of Eurovision songs making their way into programs. The emotion, national flavour and international recognition make many Eurovision songs great choices.



One of the soloists Finn performed to Eleni Foureira's Cypriot hit Fuego, they spoke about the charm of using Eurovision songs "I like how every artist brings a different genre, it's not just one, it's very spread out. I've seen pop, I've seen rock, I've seen alternative - it's really interesting."


Just a few days prior Hera Björk performed in 33oC firey heat at Midsumma - the 'Queen of Effing Everything' has also mastered the ice and managed to raise $1500AUD for Ice Skating Victoria. With a few more elements she will be starring in the next iteration of Avatar: The Last Airbender.


In short - Hera absolutely killed it (as usual), you have to catch her whilst you can in Australia!! Also huge congratulations to all performers on the night - it was a delightful show.


You can catch Hera across Australia!


Hera will be performing across the country in January and February.


  • Melbourne: 25 January - Pride of our Footscray Nightclub & Bar

  • Brisbane: 27 January - The Brightside

  • Sydney: 30 January, 1 February - The Bridge Hotel

  • Perth: 3 February - Connections

  • Adelaide: 5 February - The Jade



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