Want to see the grand final of the Eurovision Song Contest before the show? Enjoy the elaborate staging, pop metal, power ballads, and even a tune about Edgar Allan Poe (yes, it’s true).
The imposing Eurovision stage is lit up with pyrotechnics to signal the beginning of the 67th song contest. Which is being hosted by the United Kingdom on behalf of Ukraine this year.
The band steps out onto two enormous palms accompanied by an army of drummers as a rendition of last year’s winning song, Stephania by Kalush Orchestra, plays in the background.
It’s a press-only viewing, so it’s more about planning the show’s logistics than entertaining the crowd, but audience members are overheard saying things like “It brought a tear to my eye” and “It was the best opening ceremony ever.”
This is the first of three dress rehearsals for Saturday’s grand final – each with complete costume, make-up, and hair – and it follows two semi-finals that have narrowed the field from 37 to 26 countries.
The floor manager cheerfully announces, “Enjoy the show, we’re exhausted, but you’ll love it!” despite the grueling schedule: “We’re exhausted, but you’ll love it.”
Three directors switch between acts and a complex succession of sets that move on and off the stage.
Its designer has characterized it as “a wide embrace, enveloping Liverpool Arena from above and below as it extends its arms to Ukraine.”
The green room, where performers congregate when they are not performing, is situated in front of the audience.
A Ukrainian lighting designer who ordinarily works on Dancing With the Stars or The Voice in his home country has traveled to the United States specifically to work on this program.
Graham Norton, Hannah Waddingham, Ukrainian TV star Julia Sanina, and Alesha Dixon introduce the performance. And if the 26 acts are tired from numerous rehearsals, you would never know it.
Following the flag ceremony, a series of Eurovision fan favorites, including cult icon Verka Serduchka, perform on the catwalk-style stage.
The central action
Who The Hell Is Edgar? by Austria is an infectious ode (of sorts) to the literary great Edgar Allen Poe. It is a composition that everyone is discussing.
In black and white jumpsuits, Teya and Salena reference Shakespeare and criticise streaming companies’ low pay.
Ai Coracao by Portugal’s Mimicat is accompanied by a flurry of red feathers and a distinct flamenco flavor.
Meanwhile, Switzerland’s war-inspired Watergun is minimal and black, relying on Remo Forrer’s impressive and heartfelt lyrics advocating for peace as he sings, “I don’t want to be a soldier.”
Poland’s catchy Solo is accompanied by a visual of a setting sun. So even though the weather in Liverpool is gloomy, the sun is beaming in the arena. The performance also features full pyrotechnics, which bookends Blanka’s energetic dance break.
After a quick sweep of the stage, a large white sculpture approximating a half eggshell or H R Giger-inspired skull contains Luke Black, who sings techno-backed Samo Mi Se Spava (which translates to I Just Want To Sleep).
Skirt plunge
The second-favorite, France’s La Zarra, enters on a cylindrical platform at least 10 feet above the stage.
After the first chorus, she gently falls to the ground, letting her large skirts fall. Before the platform is raised to the heavens once more, and fireworks shower down around her. She learned to sing by singing along with Edith Piaf, who resembles Lady Gaga.
Andrew Lambrou then enters the stage barefoot and bare-chested. But while he may be alone for the duration of his song, his impressive vocals engulf the stage.
Cyprus’s entry, Break A Broken Heart, showcases his high notes.
Blanca Paloma of Spain enters the stage through a maroon-fringed structure. The song’s title, Eaea, comes from its muttering chorus.
Paloma has stated that the song is a “chant to her late grandmother” who inspired much of her music, and its fusion with a powerful synth line lends it a Eurovision edge.
Favorite to triumph
Another large structure is rolled onto the stage for Sweden’s performance. A rust-colored enclosure that traps vocalist Loreen and from which she slowly emerges as she sings Tattoo. It is the bookmakers’ favorite to win, which would make Loreen the first woman to win the competition twice.
All six members of Albina & Familja Kelmendi perform Duje (which translates to Love It) while wearing black cloaks. There are also pyrotechnics. Pop star Albina Kelmendi performs the love and family song with her parents and siblings.
Marco Mengoni’s Due Vite performance prompted most audience members to light their phones’ torches and wave them. This ballad is remarkably similar in staging to the entry from Cyprus, missing the bare chest and feet.
Alika of Estonia sings Bridges on a grand piano before performing it alone.
‘Rave maypole’
Finland’s Kaarija plays his techno track in front of a party-like backdrop of wooden crates.
His pink neon backing dancers perform a rave maypole dance behind him. Before forming a centipede-like creature for him to ride using his shadow to impressive effect.
This act, titled Cha Cha Cha, fits in perfectly at Eurovision, and the audience adores it.
By the halfway point, we have witnessed the majority of the iconic Eurovision Act staples, such as large structures being rolled onto and off the stage, skirts falling to the ground, and more backup dancers than you can shake a stick at.
However, let’s move on to the next act. In their entry, My Sister’s Crown, Czechia’s (the Czech Republic’s) Vesna contrast their floaty feminine costumes with hard-hitting lyrics such as “You can take your hands back, no one wants more boys dead, we’re not your dolls.”
Long-haired immigration attorney and Voyager frontman Danny Estrin perform on the hood of a full-size vehicle during Australia’s Duran Duran-influenced rock song Promise.
Belgian band Gustaph performs their 90s-inspired hit, Because Of You, while donning a bizarre outfit consisting of candy floss pink trousers and an oversized cream cowboy hat, and achieving impressively high notes.
Brunette, an Armenian vocalist with waist-length hair and a billowing white dress, sings Future Lover, another song about a boyfriend like the United Kingdom’s entry, albeit an imaginary one.
