All caught up on Tuesday’s semifinal? Good! Here’s what to look out for in the tonight’s second (and last) qualifying round.
The Contenders
Ukraine is a bookies favourite AND they have a 100% qualification record so they look pretty likely succeed whilst Australia will be competing in their first ever semifinal (after automatic qualification last year). Overall the likely winners seem less obvious than in the first heat and with so many ballads back-to-back their could be some surprises.
The Props
Australia’s performance looks very much like a ballerina in a jewellery box (although it’s probably not meant to) and Slovenia have hired a pole-dancer of sorts to accompany them. Israel will be surrounded by two dancers in a cyr wheel (giant hoop) and of course, much like Tuesday night, there will be plenty of pyrotechnics and fancy graphics going on.
The Outfits
Bulgaria look set to be the main Barbara Dex contestant in this semifinal, although Albania might also feature. Almost all the guys are competing for ‘who-wore-it-best’ with a leather jacket/dark trouser combo except for Poland’s Michal Szpak who is sticking to the Toy Soldier costume he wore for the national final performance.
The Gimmicks
Having wanted to perform naked AND with wolves but being barred from either, Belarus’ IVAN has the next best thing in hologram format and the graphics for Georgia’s performance are so integral they were allowed a redo during the jury final on Wednesday. Both Serbia and Ukraine have important messages to share in their lyrics, while Poland insist on upsetting the Brits by spelling it ‘Color’.
The Vocals
Rehearsals for the second semifinal have been fairly solid in terms of vocal performance however both Macedonia and Ukraine have left themselves some very high notes to reach. Keep an eye on Bulgaria, Poland and Ireland who have occasionally faded mid-performance.
The Names
Much less confusing for the anglophones this time round, possibly the biggest pronunciation issue will be Denmark’s Lighthouse X (or Lighthouse Ten for those after a phonetic spelling). There are another set of returning artists including Macedonia’s Kaliopi, Lithuania’s Donny Montell and the guy who normally announces Ireland’s results/ex-member of Westlife, Nicky Byrne.
The Show
Måns and Petra are still keeping up with the gay jokes and will be showing part 2 of their taxi sketch during the first break. The halftime show is another modern dance crossover with some interesting points of reference, and as with the first semifinal, we’ll get clips of the remaining Big 6 (Germany, Italy, The UK) performers while they tally the votes.
Want more? Catch up on Semifinal 1 or try our ESC talking points. Alternatively, if you’re fully up to date, see who deserves your vote on our homepage and select ‘Semi 2’ at the top!