Music
The Finale: a look behind the ESC-Scenes
The artists have been practicing their Songs under Live conditions on the big stage at the Stockholm Globe Arena. The complete Shows were even rehearsed several times a day. All the 26 candidates of electricity are under duration.
“The artists all know each other quite well,” says Dave Goodman, as he leads us through the artist area. “The are already here for days and have already appeared in the run-up to the Contest on many ESC-parties.” Goodman, spokesman for the EBU (European Broadcasting Union), the hosting of the competition. Everyone knows him here, he is friendly and has an open ear because he oversees not only the media, but also the artists, delegations of the individual countries. In a quarter of an hour rehearsal for the Show on Saturday starts, but Goodman brings nothing from the rest.
DW-reporter Silke Wünsch, prior to Jamie Lee’s wardrobe
In the backstage area, the air vibrates. In a pleasant way. Behind the wardrobe doors of vocal sounds, the Bulgarian singer Poli Genova sings a good vocal. A couple of doors down, someone is practicing scales. The Georgian Band the Young Georgian Lolitaz comes to us with their guitars, ready-made up and decked out. The Pole Michal Szpak is on the phone. Someone Darts through the door of the German Delegation; I can’t do it, have a look inside.
In the middle of it
In the mask will be slowly Packed together, all of them are made up, for the stage and TV cameras prepared. In the wardrobe is still muffled quickly the red coat from Michael Szpak, in addition, the dress of the Maltese candidate, Ira Losco. 6000 Golden beads are embroidered on it, says the dresser, three weeks you’ve been working on it.
A couple of minutes the ESC were here-candidates wearing make-up
The individual artists will be called. It’s happening, all in the direction of the stage. In the middle of the glittering Künstlerpulk we walk through barren corridors with neon light, stairs up and down, past countless material suitcases, boxes, and Security people. Goodman remains in front of another dark corridor. “This is the artist’s ramp. Here you come by afterwards, if it goes in the hall.”
Gigantic Light Technology
We go up the ramp and enter a different world. The Stockholm Globe Arena is a huge hemisphere, and 85 feet high, 110 feet in diameter. 16,000 spectators look on a gigantic stage 50 metres wide and 32 metres deep and 15 metres high. It consists of light technique, even in the ground, thousands of LEDs are anchored. There are light boxes, transparent LED walls, which are up and down and programmed in such a way that the viewer can never see where the stage ends.
The lighting designers have managed to create for each Song a new room. On the stage there are – with few exceptions – no constructions, the backdrop is created by light and projections. On the ground shimmer – only for the artists visible – red markers, so everyone knows where he must go.
The Russian ESC-candidate Sergey Lazarev appears to be floating
If the Show is running, the TV viewers a video recording of the artist of your choice. Meanwhile, in the hall: hustle and Bustle on the dark stage, people, wipe off the mirror-smooth floor. What’s the point? “The stage is always so clean that the artist can see in the dark your mark,” says Dave Goodman.
The last press conferences
We get down and go back up the ramp. In five minutes, the sample starts. In the corridor behind the stage, between them the candidates have gathered the dancers of the Eröffnungsacts,. The Pulk is set in motion, comes to meet us. We see everything up close, dick applied Make-up, glued eyelashes, überschminkte pimples. Nervously compressed lips, concentrated gaze. Dami from Australia is huge, Michal from Poland, small and meager. In television, you all will be the same size, you will smile and just pop stars.
After the General rehearsal (in the case of the Italian woman has a problem with the Monitor and dry commented: “It would be cool if the morning would work”), there are the last of the press conferences.
Jamie-Lee Kriewitz: “I jump when I’m nervous”
Also, the German candidate Jamie-Lee Kriewitz turns again to the journalists: How do you feel? What place are you going to achieve? How big are your chances? What are you doing until the Show starts? The 19-Year-old answered politely to all the questions. Of course she was nervous and would jump with fright around, she says. And Yes, you know how strong the competition was, but you go with a good feeling in the competition. Otherwise: “I will sing, I will practice my Song, and in between sleep, when I come in the Hotel to rest. When I Wake up, I’m going to sing again. Until finally the Show starts.”
Then a guitarist, and both perform Jamie Lee’s Song “Ghost” again acoustically. Ready for the stage.