Helloo!

Sooo, we finally have a hint of what the staging will look like for every song in semi final 1.

I'm overall satisfied of how it all looks like, even if some stagings are a bit disappointing.

AZERBAIJAN

https://youtu.be/icVuB7ZjsU8

What a great way to start the show! A really good idea here, modern yet simplistic, very effective! I just hope it doesn't get too boring, because if they keep on doing the same few moves during the whole song, it will the ruin the idea, wich would be a shame.

ICELAND

https://youtu.be/GaHHaAUSueQ

I actually like what he's wearing, it's... original ^^ I don't understand why it is last on everybody's toplists, I mean, it is still vocally amazing, and please don't tell me you were waiting for some outstanding staging full of props and neon-colored lazers, along with some random nodding red dinosaure's head. This is the way you stage such a song, all in simplicity. Well, obviously, it doesn't make the song any better, and it's still not an amazingly memorable staging, but still, when you rank REHEARSALS, you rank STAGINGS and VOICES, not SONGS. That's why I don't get why it's last. Next to last, okay, but dead last, NOPE!

ALBANIA

https://youtu.be/28xf6UoCozo

Yes, his voice is still a gift to humanity. About the staging, I didn't expect something extravagant, so I wasn't really surprised when I saw it. You might think it will be a bit boring, but I think that with different camera angles, it will be fine!

BELGIUM

https://youtu.be/ogvfnF7Cp2Y

Like the big majority, I'm not a fan of the dress. But at least, her vocals improved a lot, so that's a big "plus". However, I expected more movement on stage, less emptiness...

CZECH REPUBLIC

https://youtu.be/UcXb5Vbil7Y

I really like the colors used - it's like the "magic chords", color version: they always work well together. However, the addition of these female back vocalists is not a good idea. At all. But other than that, the staging itself is fairly great, modern, dynamic, and close enough to the music video. Oh, and I don't mind the backpack anymore, I actually quite like it now!

LITHUANIA

https://youtu.be/2gJUog4_ppo

From what I saw, the staging looks a bit unfinished - by that, I mean that I hope that her husband will wear less "regular" clothes, and more "staging" clothes, because when compared to how Ieva looks like, he looks a bit "cheap". Buut that's just personal opinion, maybe others will love it, I don't know. Oh, and I hope that she won't stand on that bridge the whole performance, because it will be a bit boring.

ISRAEL

https://youtu.be/o0yKWd-6dJc

Can someone PLEASE explain me WHY there are a bunch of Chinese cats in the background? Uh? WHY? Ugh, nevermind... I feel like the staging lacks something, but I don't know what exactly is missing. Maybe it's not as full as the music video, or there are just less things happening, I don't know. A bit disappointed by this, to be honest. Hopefully, it will be better with camera angles. Oh, and I love how her voice echoes (echoes and goes), it gives the song an interesting dimension haha Sad it will disappear when the arena will be full of people...

BELARUS

https://youtu.be/T9qWrxG6SYE

I all looks Spanish, why does it look Spanish? D8 And why does the thing he's standing on look like a slaughtered piano? And what is the big bow next to him? And why does the dancer act like she's dying in terrible convulsions? This staging's a bit weird, but I like it - I guess it's because anything is better than this horrible LED suit... And his vocals are a lot better, by the way!

ESTONIA

https://youtu.be/Y-RpE1r0FbE

Why is the sound suddenly bad? It makes the drums sound like some dwarves working in some underground factory or some weird steam machine... About Elina's dress new projections... well... they're... great? I honestly don't have much to say about this staging as it is the same as in Eesti Laul, soooo... yeah.

BULGARIA

https://youtu.be/EoRfu01ZjKw

I honestly expected much more. I mean, obviously it's harder to come up with a great looking staging when you don't have LED screens (ugh, I'm still ranting about this...), but still! I hope they'll have some amazing camera effects, because otherwise, it's just gonna be boring. So sorry, but random plastic boxes are not good props for such a song...

MACEDONIA

https://youtu.be/epZFvKR0JoA

What the hell is this group procession? (And why does the backing vocalist on the thumbnail look like a crossover between Ieva and Sennek?) I really hope there will be A LOT of dance moves before they all go to the bridge (seriously, are they throwing a party on this bridge? Is there a chest full of gold on it? Why are they all - except for the drummer, poor honey being left out - going there? Why can't they go one after the other, instead of forming a big messy group of people?) And don't even get me started on her... dress? Shirt? How do you call that?

CROATIA

https://youtu.be/zPisrCwcWpY

First of all, I must say I'm really impressed by the fact that they managed to make these two colors look really cool together. And second of all... what a voice! Even if the stage lacks dancers - I expected something similar to the music video - she fills it with her amazing stage presence. Oh, and Sennek, darling, I think that Franka's dress is the look you wanted to achieve, right? Well, take note, and try again, okay?

AUSTRIA

https://youtu.be/gtBBedALWZM

Girls, girls, girls... It's "ain't nobooooooody", not "ain't nobodyyyyyyyy". You know that you sound French when you say "nobodyyyy" and it's very disturbing? No? Well, now you do. I don't really know what to say about the staging, because I expected a bit more, but I'm still overall happy with what we've got, so yeah. Good luck Austria.

GREECE

https://youtu.be/K2WtOx_d5eY

Yianna, sweetie, I know that this blue color is lovely, but don't you think that it's a bit... you know... not enough for a good staging? That adding a bunch of dancers would largely benefit your chances of advancing to the final? They can also be dressed up in blue if you want to, even if they would blend with the background - or maybe there actually are dancers, but we can't see them because they wear blue? :O

FINLAND

https://youtu.be/jGQtVTyV8MM

That's... interesting. Now, I would like to have the meaning of this... thing on stage that for some weird reason remind me of O.Torvald's head last year. Overall, I'm satisfied with what they brought, it's lively and dynamic, and these male dancers are awesome - I love their suits, by the way. The only thing that disturbs me a lot is the high-pitched "I ain't, I ain't, I ain't scared no more". It sounds more like an annoying mosquito rather than the "childish voice" effect they wanted to achieve, so I hope they'll consider getting rid of that guy.

ARMENIA

https://youtu.be/xAu6yNpuI70

I like the circle of dominos they brought on stage - how to fill an empty stage when you don't have the budget for a couple of dancers. I just expected more qami-machines, but you can't always get what you want in life. I also prefer his new outfit, because the other one was a bit weird - it actually reminded me of a Russian cartoon I used to watch when I was younger, when a bucnh of humans landed on a weird planet (don't ask me why it reminded me of that, but it did) Oh, and for some reason I always expected a cow with pair of wings to pop out of nowhere.

SWITZERLAND

https://youtu.be/Zeks1nxXMs0

I really miss the blue and red triangles, they were cool, even if they sort of forced Co to stay where she was - at least now she can move. I just miss some smoke machines, but otherwise it's fine, as they made the stage look smaller with their second stage.

IRELAND

https://youtu.be/m83IFWf4llY

Oh boy, oh dear boy, you have no idea how much I love these kinds of stagings... I absolutely LOVE when they bring street lightnings on stage, I absolutely LOVE when dancers are kind of living their own life on stage, I absolutely LOVE when they bring some unusual stuff on stage, like a bench, and I absolutely LOVE when it feels like you're watching a music video and not a stage performance. But despite being simply amazing, it still lacks a detail, THE detail that would have made this staging perfect: a tree. Why a tree? Well, what is a park without a tree? Oh, and the snow at the end... Mama mia I love this staging!

CYPRUS

https://youtu.be/uwia7U2uynw

We ALWAYS have one. ALWAYS. Every year. The overrated staging, that will be AWE-SOME no matter what. I mean, obviously it leads every toplist, it's perfect. Well, darlings, let me tell you. No, this staging is not perfect. First of all, what on earth is this suit? It's like a carnival thingy without the feathers. Then, no, her vocals are not flawless. Granted, she dances. But so what? If she can't handle perfect vocals while dancing, then why is she dancing? Look at Finland, for example: Saara couldn't do it, so she doesn't do it. And finally, please, tell me what exactly is sooo outstanding about this staging? Because all I can see is a lead singer and four backing vocalists, dancing. That's all. Is there some unexpected prop? Nope. Are there never-seen-before dance moves? Nope. Is there a burning car on stage? Nope. It's just a basic formula that seems to be working again and again, with nothing new in it. So, really, I want to understand, how is this staging is soooo much better than everyone else's?

That's it for the individual reviews, and here is my ranking of the first semi final rehearsals, based on the staging and vocals only, not on the song:

19. Macedonia

18. Lithuania

17. Belgium

16. Bulgaria

15. Iceland

14. Greece

13. Albania

12. Estonia

11. Switzerland

10. Cyprus

9. Austria

8. Armenia

7. Israel

6. Croatia

5. Belarus

4. Czech Republic

3. Azerbaijan

2. Finland

1. Ireland