Eurovision is here! Delegations have been arriving in Basel in the last few days and rehearsals started on May 3. After closing the first rehearsals to the press in 2022, the EBU has now done away with TikTok videoclips. They will instead release sets of three photographs a day after each rehearsal, as well as description of the proceedings on their official channels. As such, today, we cover yesterday’s rehearsals, and start with Australia, opener of the second semi-final and first rehearsal of the day, with “Milkshake Man”.
🇦🇺 Australia – Go-Jo – First rehearsal
The following pictures have been published by the official Eurovision accounts. (Source: Alma Bengtsson, Corinne Cumming / EBU)
What happened on stage?
This description is sourced from indications given by the official Eurovision Reddit account and by the production notes of the Australian delegation.
- Go-Jo wears a 70’s-style white bodysuit with a red/white-striped collar and a red scarf, but he’s also shirtless for a good section of the performance
- He is accompanied by two dancers wearing red and white stripped dresses in a similar style
- There is a “keytar solo”, a tribute to Voyager (who represented Australia in Liverpool and who come from the state of Western Australia just like Go-Jo)
- In terms of props, a giant milkshake blender occupies the centre of the stage.
- We can expect neon lights and pink lasers for the final section of the song
- The LED screens will complement this atmosphere and display an “explosion of colours” filling the entire arena
- In terms of pyrotechnics, fire and jets are used on the front stage during the final two choruses, with the final section having smoke jets mirrored on the LED wall
The stage director for this performance is Marvin Dietmann, working with Black Skull. Dietmann has worked on many Eurovision performances in the past, including “Rise Like A Phoenix” and “Space Man”. This year, he’s also working with the Irish and German delegations.
Stay tuned for further coverage today, with the rehearsals of yesterday, and for our live coverage on the ground starting on May 10, which will include (among other things) the full dress rehearsals and the live shows, live from Basel!
