LIVE BLOG of the Eurovision Song Contest 2024 – the live shows (Dress Rehearsals) minute by minute

Dress Rehearsal 1 – Semi-Final 1 (6 May, 15:45)

18:09:54 – At the end of the show, we come to the usual moment, the finalists are announced! We also have a little technical info to share with you, the screen splits in two in the middle and the top part rises up, revealing the Greenroom, which is located backstage.

Thank you for joining us for the rehearsal of the first semi-final. We’ll be back soon!

17:57:58 – After the voting is over, we are once again greeted by a Eurovision star on stage, Benjamin Ingrosso with his new song.

17:50:24 – We don’t want to give too much away about the extra performers, during the voting break we will see Johnny Logan perform a song from a previous winner, but not his own, who it will be is a surprise! 😉

17:48:35 – Finally, Luxembourg is the last act! After winning Eurovision five times, they took a 31-year break, but we’re delighted to see them back in 2024. This year, the returning country will be represented by Tali, who will close the first semi-final on 7 May – and as well as being a singer, she is also a theatre performer, so she is no stranger to the big stage. Fighter is a really catchy pop song, sung in French and English.
There is an extra box on the stage, similar to the ones we see above the stage, in which Tali and her dancers begin their performance. Tali is in an orange and red dress like all her dancers. We get a very colourful and significantly adapted production from Luxembourg, perhaps a little too much so?

17:39:40 – Next in the order is Portuguese singer/songwriter iolanda, singing her song Grito. The title translates as “Shout”, but there is no shouting in this melodic ballad. This song is a fusion of pop and R ‘n’ B with traditional Portuguese fado roots, and iolanda’s vocals seem to fill every corner of the arena. The stage set is similar to what we saw at Festival da Canção, with five white-clad, covered-face dancers performing a contemporary dance. The central cube is also lowered, which makes the space more intimate and enhances the spectacle… Creative and hypnotic.

17:32:47 – It’s time for Australia’s Electric Fields – fans can remember them from Australia Decides 2019. Zaachariaha Fielding’s fabulous white gown catches the arena light and transforms into a rainbow at the start, then the whole performance transforms into an uplifting cosmic explosion of light and colour on the LED wall and floor. Zaachariaha is backed by Michael Ross on keyboards, two backing singers, and of course the didgeridoo.

There’s a lot of movement around the stage, giving the feeling that this is a performance designed to fill every corner of the arena with pure joy from start to finish, and we’re delighted that Yankunytjatjara, an Aboriginal language, has made it into the Eurovision canon of music.

17:25:00 – Next up is Azerbaijan, where Fahree performs a powerful ballad sung in English and Azerbaijani. Fahree’s attire is black and silver and has an armoured feel, Ilkin is black with glittering sleeves. For most of the song, Fahree is alone in the middle of the stage, with a monochrome graphic in the background showing an animated figure slowly emerging from the water. In the second half, two huge hands appear on stage, allowing Fahree to sing the final verse and chorus standing between them. It’s a very clever production that uses a combination of lighting and graphics.

17:19:44 – On stage Moldova, represented this year by experienced singer Natalia Barbu. The stage set includes the same static routine as we saw in the Etapa Națională, the national final in Moldova, with applause and a white violin but Natalia is no longer accompanied by backing singers, she is all alone, in front of a beautiful backdrop of seascapes, trees, flowers and butterflies.

Below the violin part, the LED wall turns into huge wings, so that from the front Natalia looks like an angel. Special mention should be made of Natalia’s vocals, which were flawless throughout the entire performance.

17:13:41 – Finland arrives on stage, represented this year by the duo Windows95. Fans of their UMK performance will be pleased to hear that the giant denim egg has made it to Malmö, and the production features the regulation amount of nudity. The production is pretty much an exact replica of the UMK stage set, with the graphics in the background giving a 90s screensaver feel. Unfortunately, however, the vocals are far from perfect, and the question is whether the visuals will distract the audience.

17:06:33 – The next performer is the Slovenian Raiven, an experienced performer, songwriter, harpist, theatre performer and mezzo-soprano.The play Veronika is inspired by the story of Veronika Deseniška, a Slovenian noblewoman who fell in love with a member of the royal family and was accused of witchcraft but acquitted. One of the song’s credited authors is none other than Bojan Cvjetićanin, frontman of last year’s Slovenian start-up Joker Out.

For the set, Raiven wears a dark silver bodysuit, the production starts on the floor, and Raiven’s movements are displayed as a graphic pulsing on the LED floor. He is joined by five contemporary dance artists in nude bodysuits who perform a complex choreography of intertwining bodies, the whole performance has a very similar feel to the official video, mystical but also very dramatic. And at the end, the high-pitched voices take the roof off the arena. Compared to the first rehearsal, we get a much darker stage, which was an objection for many based on previous footage.

16:54:49 – Hera Björk is no stranger to the Eurovision stage, having represented Iceland in 2010. She’s a legendary pop diva, both at home in Iceland and among Eurovision audiences, and this song is one of her trademark rousing pop songs. Hera changed the red, glittery jumpsuit on Söngvakeppnin to a gold and distinctly glittery one with fringes. The production starts on a black platform with five backing singers behind her. It’s very similar to Söngvakeppnin’s performance, only on a mill scale – all the gold graphics and the dancers’ silhouettes on the LED wall make it feel like a big retro party.

16:46:00 – Representing Croatia this year is Baby Lasagna. The stage set is similar to the one we saw in Dora 2024. Traditional dance elements, Baby Lasagna in huge ruffled sleeves, great use of the whole stage. The performance has been thoroughly upgraded, from the dancing to the herd of neon farm animals on the LED wall. The dancing neon cats appear right at the end. Big curtains of smoke, flame streams in every chorus. This was the biggest pyrotechnic performance of the semi-final.

16:40:43 – Next up for rehearsal is LUNA, a singer, songwriter and theatre performer from Warsaw, Poland. The song is three minutes long, upbeat inspiro-pop with a super catchy chorus.
On stage, LUNA appears between two huge neon chess pieces that roll across the stage. She wears a bright PVC-like red cape with huge, pointy shoulders. Removing the cape reveals a long white dress with red horns. The skirt then disappears and the final appearance is white shorts. Vocally, however, we still can’t point out anything positive.

LUNA has three faceless back dancers, in black, white and red, and there is a great moment when, lying on the LED floor, she appears to be riding a red horse. It has a huge sci-fi chess vibe, and is a very clever visual piece.

16:29:24 – Ukraine, compared to their performance in Vidbir, has definitely improved the stage set, but whether for the right direction or not we’re not sure.The second cliff of the day is shown,it’s more of a rocky slope, not like what we saw earlier in Serbia, Jerry Heil climbs the cliff where he sings in front of a beautiful backdrop, then alyona alyona emerges from the right side of the stage to perform his rapbet. There are a lot of graphic elements in the production but the quality of these is questionable in many places.

16:19:41 – Ireland is represented by Bambie Thug, Bambie is standing in a candle circle, wearing a black dress with a tutu skirt and shoulder horns. Her usual dramatic white make-up is crowned with antler-shaped hair. There is also a centaur-like, topless dancer accompanying Bambie in some ballet choreography. In the final section, the candle circle is raised and the finale ends with a CROWN THE WITCH subtitle in the background. Eurovision theatre in every sense.

16:17:42 – Lithuania takes the stage third. Similar to the Lithuanian national final, EUROVIZIJA.LT, Silvester in his red leather suit, with four male dancers behind him with masks and lots of red and background strobe lights. The masks have been updated and are now less turtleneck-like, more like black hoods. Lithuania does not use any pyrotechnics. A very solid performance, the Lithuanians came with a quality stage, it’s no big surprise to say they have a booked place in the final.

16:09:14 – Our second act is Serbia, represented this year by Teya Dora with her song Ramonda. The way the song is performed is very similar to what we saw in Serbia’s national final. A large rock with shadow lighting, a graphic of clouds and stars and lightning, and a finale of a blooming ramond flower. Teya is wearing a dark grey dress that has a long, layered skirt – it’s all very dramatic and moody. She definitely stands out from this year’s field.

16:01:45 – Our first performer from Cyprus, 17-year-old Silia Kapsis, arrives. Her outfit has been changed to sparkly white trousers and crop top, and four male back-up dancers are wearing cargo trousers and buggy white t-shirts. There are no stage props, but the LED backdrop and floor have lots of swirling green and red graphics. Just the kind of upbeat number we need to get the party started on May 7.

15:45:47 – The show opens with a rousing opening for this year’s show from Eleni Foureira, Eric Saade and Chanel, attention all those following from the venue, eyebrows to beware, a very fiery performance put together by our former contestants. We also get a sneak peek at this year’s postcard theme at the start of the show… But we’ll have an article on that coming soon! Keep an eye on our site!

15:44:47 – Welcome to the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest live blog, where – contrary to previous practice – this year we will not be covering the so-called delegation rehearsals before the Eurovision week due to the change in the rules of participation, but rather the first public rehearsals of the live shows and the individual performers, the Liverpool productions. Stay tuned, Eurovision Song Contest 2024 – Semi-Final 1 Dress Rehearsal 1 starts at 15:45 CET – but we’re already starting the first round.

Source: OurVision International
Illustration: Eurovision Song Contest 2024 billboard banner – SVT/EBU-graphics