Eurovision 2002 – Second Rehearsals – Thursday

Finland

All of the comments that you lot have been reading about this, both here and in other sites are all totally true. This may not be the strongest song in the world, but she doesnt half attack the song. She knows where the camera is and knows that to get the result that she deserves she has to sing to the audience at home… and boy does she do that. In the hall she has a presence that is virtually unrivaled by any other performer and she genuinely enjoys singing the song. Attack is a word that I often use to describe a performace, and she has that in bags. 33/1 is an outstanding bet… not for a win, but for each-way. Vocally she has great power and looks fantastic. Her backing singers however are a bit too loud and need to be toned down in order to give a good performance a great edge.

Denmark

I have been trying to find an adequate phrase to describe Malene’s performance, but the only one that I can come up with is, well, uninspired. She still persists in doing limited choreography at the very front of the sweeping portion of the stage, she just doesnt inject enough into the song to get the voters of Europe picking up the phone. It might do well on the Juries, but it is too bland for anything from the televoters. The best bit is undoubtedly the backing singers, who do some finger snapping, but fail to get a look on the camera’s. Thankfully for the press of Europe, if she keeps this up we shall NOT be back in Copenhagen in 2003. The one saving grace for this song is that she has a talent. Perhaps with a different song she could have done something, but it is still in the pack i am afraid.

France

This is Corrinne Hermes’ younger sister. Facially she looks very like her and she isnt that far behind her vocally. In her purple dress she stands front and centre of the huge stage and basically sings the song to the camera. The song itself is fantastic, and at the key change really gets you in the pit of your stomach. If this contest was still based on Jury scores, then i would say that it is a definite winner and to bet on it in huge amounts. However in the age of Televoting, i get the feeling that the European public will see it as ” the french song” and not ” the winner”. On the screen however, it does look very good. Expect high numbers of points from French language countries and countries with 50/50 televote and Jury.

Germany

Pre-contest, this should be the favourites, based on the pedigree of the song writers and the televoter friendly nature of the song. On Stage there is no doubt that there is a something about her, but once again her stature detracts from the backing singers and it does tend to look awkward at times. Also some of the time I sense that she is struggling with something, but I do not know what. The performance itself is lacking something, we think here that it could be some hand movements from Corinna to compliment the backing singers movements. It should win, but it might turn the voters off. This week has shown that it gets muddling, and this is another muddling song. The stage is set in Orange and Red colours with purple bits at the change of key. All of the right notes are hit..but there is the feeling that she thinks she might not win, which could kill her chances.

Turkey

This is getting better.. the English Verse is definitely helping it to be lifted from the basement, towards mid table resprctability. The choreography is also getting more polished and she is looking more sultry as the rehearsals go on. The stage is set in a deep Purple, with red flower animations all around. Overall it looks and sounds like a typical Turkish entry, but on the other hand it isnt that ethnic. Certainly a good effort, and as the lead singer is wearing a little black dress they can be assured something because it looks very effective on the screens.

Malta

This is getting better but, sparkly dress alert… she is going to have a white spangly thing on which looks worse that it appears. She still blows the glitter at the first row though. Visually it is not half bad and vocally she still nails every note. I think that this will do big things on the night.

Romania

This is song that will make Europe go “awww bless” in unison. Unfortunately it will not make them go ” tell u what, lets vote for him”. It is a half decent song, with the stage set in an amber colour with multi coloured flashy things on the background, Alvairas appears from behind the “sails” and procees to perform winsomely to the camera. Unfortunately the Crocheted sweaters that both he and his backing girls wear are awful and there is a non descript performance to go with the song. There was more than 1 duff note in this performance and he must sort that out if he is to escape relelgating Lithuania.

Lithuania

This is song that will make Europe go “awww bless” in unison. Unfortunately it will not make them go ” tell u what, lets vote for him”. It is a half decent song, with the stage set in an amber colour with multi coloured flashy things on the background, Alvairas appears from behind the “sails” and procees to perform winsomely to the camera. Unfortunately the Crocheted sweaters that both he and his backing girls wear are awful and there is a non descript performance to go with the song. There was more than 1 duff note in this performance and he must sort that out if he is to escape relelgating Lithuania.

Latvia

English: Latvian singer Marie N. Latviešu: Lat...
English: Latvian singer Marie N. Latviešu: Latviešu dziedātāja Marie N.. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

This one isn’t half bad you know. Be on the lookout for the “story” in this one. I am not going to spoil it for you, but suffice to say that the costume that she starts with will not be the one she ends the performance with (!). After speaking to the delegation Last Night they are confident of a top 10 finish… perhaps. She is a very comfetable singer and uses most of the stage with the performace. Points to look out for.. apart from the story, white cowboy hats.

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