Despite the problems with the press conference as reported by EuroVisionary, the sixth day of preparations continued with competitors from the first semifinal and some from the second semifinal taking to the stage.
Romania went first. Elena’s rehearsal revealed a bit more about the way the song will be presented; Elena makes her entrance on a throne. The delegation was pleased with the rehearsal and believes they are now ready for the semifinal next Tuesday. Of her participation in a celebrity dancing show in her native land, Elena said, "I took part, for a charity act together with my colleague, we got third position. You can see some clips about that on YouTube. My favourite dance style is salsa, as in Romania I sing Latino music and I’m in love with this style."
Despite its up-tempo beat, the Finnish entry, Lose Control is about homelessness. A positive feeling among the Finnish delegation was backed up by their conference, where they expressed their satisfaction with the way the song comes across on the television.
Another delegation happy with their progress is the Portuguese. In the press conference, lead singer Daniela Varela, was challenged to sing one of Portugal’s most popular entries, Lusitana Paixão from 1991. She responded with a remarkable rendition.
Chiara won’t reveal her outfit until the first dress rehearsal, although blue dominates the background. Chiara was very grateful to the crew for the work they have done, I am very satisfied with this background. "We are thankful to Channel One that they worked late into the night for us to fix the graphics, they are amazing now, exactly what we wanted. If I would win it would be my happiest day of my life, and I would fulfill my father’s dream. Malta would have a party for one year!"
Press conferences can be a time for gifts and freebies to be given out, and over the years, there have been some unusual items distributed. At their conference, the Bosnians handed out medals of honour to the press as the band, Regina, regard themselves as soldiers of love.
The Croatians are using a wind machine as part of their presentation and the stage
background is dark. Igor spoke about the pressure of performing,” I have my own techniques to get rid of stress, I meditate; imagine nice pictures in my head. An event like this can be stressful but these kinds of things relax me".
Carrying the hopes of the Irish are Sinéad Mulvey & Black Daisy. Their song, Et Cetera, was composed by people from four different countries, Denmark, Ireland, Italy and Sweden. Sinead her outfit for the semifinal, a sparkly catsuit.
The most unusual song theme at this year’s contest come from Latvia, traffic jams. They are taking advantage of the free language rule and singing completely in Russian. During his press conference, Intars took off his shirt and treated (if that’s the right word!) the assembled press to the sight of his completely tattooed torso.
The Serbians wore the outfits that will be worn in the semifinal, which includes a yellow jacket for Marko to match his hair. The rehearsal caused Marko to sweat a lot but he said that it was not because of his dance routine but simply because “I am fat.”
The Poles were not completely happy with their first rehearsal, but were happier today. Health problems did not help their preparations. Their performance includes two ballet dancers.
In the face of the pressure of being the favourite, Norway’s Alexander Rybak is keen to keep his mind focused on the task in hand. The delegation as a whole is also trying to stay calm.
Christina Metaxa from Cyprus spends some of her performance sitting on a box. The blue background gives an aquatic feel to the song. White is the order of the day for the outfits of Christina and her backing group.
Another country to show us what they will be wearing in the semifinal was Armenia, the last country to perform today. Inga and Anush will wear black and blue dresses complimented by headdress. A memorable part of their performance is green lasers operated by little controls on their hands.
You can see some photos from todays conferences by following the links below, or by visiting the Photo Albums section.
Links
Croatia 2nd press conference
Romania 2nd press conference
Portugal 2nd press conference
