France in “Absolutely Superbly Staged” shocker

By
Nick Deller
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I’m genuinely in awe of this, actually. Such a simple and effective staging! For most of the song, Lisa is alone on stage, with a slow, slow pan back down une rue which starts in the wreckage of war, and gradually, ever so slowly revives and returns to life. Doves fly off from the wreckage, and then, spine-tingles. Four real uniformed drummers enter the stage to flank Lisa, joined by a mass rank of identical virtual drummers on the screen. It’s a little nod to Les Miserables, and it’s a salutary lesson to RTP – if you use your own language, you’ve GOT to use the visuals to tell your story. Get it right, as Lisa has, and it’s spectacular.

That might just be your breakout hit of this year’s rehearsals. Confidently calling it for top 10 already, and there may be more juice in the tank yet.