As an American, Eurovision makes me weep for one big reason: it’s so damn efficient. In two hours, there’s a big opening, a bit of host blathering, 16 performances, voting in 40 countries, a bit of local color and performances, tallying of votes, and announcing the winners. In two hours! One of the reasons I stopped watching shows like American Idol is because they take too damn long.
Got that off my chest. Onto Eurovision 2015 Semi-Final 1!
The evening started with the reigning queen of Eurovision, Conchita Wurst, singing her winning song Rise Like a Phoenix. She looked lovely in her signature strapless gown, this time white, showing off those gorgeous shoulders.
Artists from 16 countries took to the stage, but only 10 will continue on to the finale. They are:
- Albania
- Armenia
- Russia
- Romania
- Hungary
- Greece
- Estonia
- Georgia
- Serbia
- Belgium
Best performance of the night goes to: Russia!
Polina Gagarina was amazing! What a great voice and such a powerful song. A Million Voices was not one of my favorite songs, but I’m loving it now.
Divalicious award of the night goes to: Serbia!
Beauty Never Lies starts out as a ballad and becomes a party! Bojana Stamenov commanded the stage with ease with her big voice and powerful presence.
Surprise of the night goes to Romania!
Voltaj’s powerful performance vaulted their (mostly) non-English song De la Capat (All over Again) into the finale.
Most touching moment goes to Armenia!
Tears came to my eyes as each performer moved to different countries on a map of the world, representing the Armenian diaspora after the 1916 genocide. Face the Shadow remains one of my top songs, but Genealogy’s performance needs a little more work.
Eurovision Semi-Final 2 will be held on Thursday, May 21, at 21:00 CEST. That’s 3:00 p.m. EDT and Noon PDT in the U.S. You can watch the live show for free on YouTube and the Eurovision website.
Lori Writer 