ESC preliminary decision: rehearsals for the big show

by Marcel Stober

Lights on in Berlin-Adlershof! The German ESC preliminary decision will take place here on Friday. And of course there will be a lot of rehearsals before the big live show. Each act performs three to four times on this day and has the opportunity to try out various variations of their performance. We followed our nine possible ESC acts throughout the day and revealed here how they want to present themselves to Germany.

All headlights on Ryk

Ryk is the last to enter the stage of the German preliminary round on this rehearsal day. During his ballad “Oh Boy”, a spotlight initially illuminates only part of his face. In the first pass, his eyes are highlighted, then there is a diagonal beam across his head. But then you see Ryk in his entirety. He is dressed entirely in black and stands barefoot on a platform about 30 centimeters high. In the first part of the song you can see sound waves on the LED wall behind him, then later a swirl of color appears on the wall behind Ryk. Many spotlights around the stage support his very personal song and light up during the highlights of the track.

Leona says yes to the ESC

Particularly staged: There is not a single cut in Leona’s performance.

Throughout the entire song, Leona is accompanied by a Steadicam, which highlights the fragility of the ballad “Undream You” is supposed to capture. For the first half of the song the camera is very close to her and her face. Here the production relies entirely on intimacy. In the second half of the song, Leona is seen primarily in the middle of the stage from further away – in the final rehearsal run, however, the camera stays close to her. The LED wall shows a shot of Leona’s face with different shades. The singer is wearing a white dress that reaches over her hips and is very reminiscent of a wedding dress. Leona even wears a veil on her head, which is always illuminated in a warm light.

NinetyNine shows a lot of love

ESC fans on stage: NinetyNine uses photos from the community on the topic of “love”.

With his happy pop song “Love On A Budget” opens NinetyNine’s German preliminary round on Friday. And the tallest candidate in the German final (1.99 meters) takes part in a classic band performance: with him are three other band members on guitar, bass and drums. He wears a white shirt with leather-look pants. The song, which is only around 2:20 minutes long in its original version, was extended a bit for the television show – for example with a guitar solo from NinetyNine. In the background you can see high-rise buildings – and also some photos on the subject of love that ESC fans were able to send in beforehand.

Through the city with Isaac

Isaak also scores points in the ESC preliminary round with his strong voice.

It’s about running with Isaak. His song is called “Always On The Run,” but of course there’s no running on stage! First, Isaak stands in the middle of two semi-transparent screens, so-called gauze screens, onto which a projector projects colors and shapes. In the background you can see the outlines of a big city in strong colors – primarily in green, blue and pink. Isaak stays in the center of the stage, moves around a bit and turns around during the song so that the camera can also capture the audience behind him. In rehearsal runs two and three, these screens are missing and the city outlines can only be seen on the LED wall.

Floryan stands in the light

If Floryan wins after “I want to go to the ESC!” also the next vote and go to Malmö?

He has only known for six days that he will be competing in the German preliminary round. Floryan, the winner of “I want to go to the ESC!” adds “Scars” relies on facial expressions and gestures and hardly moves on stage. The stage background is black and pale yellow, although in the TV picture it sometimes looks glistening white and gives the performance a calm, elegant touch. Floryan wears a dark suit with glitter applications on one trouser leg and one sleeve.

Gallantly turn on the television

Just don’t zap away! Gallantly singing “Cat” at the preliminary round.

Mona and Paul from Duo Galant make a special appearance. The camera work on her song “Cat” is almost always unfamiliar. Sometimes subtly, sometimes a zoom, in each case simply different from the usual television convention. And as if that wasn’t enough, there are even four different perspectives on what’s happening in a split screen. In keeping with this, Galant also brought a total of 30 tube televisions onto the stage – and everything is reminiscent of the beginnings of music television. You can often see glowing cat eyes on the screens, and smoke rises behind the screens. The LED area in the background is only used during the bridge and even then shows cat’s eyes. Singer Mona moves cat-like to the song and shows her claws in the chorus. Meow!

Marie Reim walks down the show stairs

Marie Reim wants to go to the ESC with disco hits and her dancers.

This is how Schlager has to be! Marie Reim begins her song “Naive” in the backlight on a sprawling show staircase and wearing a red glittery dress. The stage background is reminiscent of disco lights and consists of red laser beams and blue glowing blocks. Marie Reim doesn’t stay alone on stage for long. Four dancers in sleeveless black tops join them – from the second verse onwards the singer moves into their midst and goes down the stairs. On the LED wall, the outlines of several dancers dance along with their choreography, slightly offset. For the last rehearsals, the show stairs will be built a little further forward. And not only that: Marie’s dancers are suddenly shirtless too. But the preliminary decision doesn’t start until after 10 p.m.

Monet’s Hanging Gardens

Green thumb and good voice: Bodine Monet and her floral production.

Bodine Monet begins her song “Tears Like Rain” in a dense leafy structure hanging from the studio ceiling. In the first verse the camera looks for Bodine in the thicket, towards the first chorus the garlands of leaves are pulled up and we see the singer in her entirety for the first time. Bodine Monet wears a semi-transparent dress – and gets visible support shortly before the second chorus. Four background singers enter the stage – and the leaves disappear even further from view. Lit in gold, they are reminiscent of a chandelier that hangs above Bodine and her singers. In the background on the LED wall you can see puddles of gold, into which pyrotechnic rain falls from the studio ceiling at the end.

Max Mutzke: Red, black and strong

You know his voice. Max Mutzke remains “Forever Strong”.

Made the beginning Max Mutzke. Red is the color of this performance. The stage is red and black from start to finish. Max himself wears a black top, black pants, white shoes and a hat. You can see its silhouette on the LED surface, which is repeatedly interrupted by effects that are reminiscent of image disturbances. During the chorus of “Forever Strong” individual lines of text and words that he sings are shown there every now and then. Max Mutzke stands in one place throughout the entire song – but that already brought him luck. He once finished eighth in Istanbul in 2004 without much movement. At the end of the song, a few pyroscopic sparks rise into the air.