From our special correspondent in Malmö (Sweden)
A microphone that slips at the very beginning and a camera in the field when it has nothing to do there. Nothing to destabilize Slimane – these slags, common in rehearsal, will quickly be corrected for the live performance. The singer delivered his first public performance this Wednesday afternoon, under the eyes of accredited journalists, on the Eurovision stage at the Malmö Arena.
Everything that the French artist had promised – the intimate atmosphere, the dialogue with the public through the camera, the emotion… – came to fruition on the screen.
Separation and argument are replayed on stage
Let’s try to describe this tricolor painting in a few lines: dressed all in white, Slimane begins to sing lying sideways on a turquoise rectangle which will later reveal its extent. Already, his eyes are glued to the lens. With the tip of his finger, he touches the camera, the steadycam comes to life. He maintains his gaze while getting up, continuing his walk on his knees. His gestures and his face are framed closely.
He gets up, the sequence shot continues moving away, then coming closer. These are the separation, the dispute and the heartbreak at the heart of My love which seem to replay themselves on the set. The sequence shot stops at the moment of the a cappella. Slimane moves several meters away behind the microphone, smoke has taken over the stage, he projects his voice which resonates in the Arena and proclaims “Do you love me? “. The steadycam returns to capture his last words at the same time as his face in close-up, his gaze and his smile. The French picture ends like this.
“He is master of the stage”
” I had goosebumps. We see that he is master of the stage and this confidence will undoubtedly bring him points with the public, tells us the Dutchman Roy Postema, contributor to the ESC United site who ventures to deliver a prediction. For me, this year, victory will be between France and Croatia.”
“Slimane is frankly a potential winner,” confirms Pierre Bertinchamps, Belgian journalist who covers the competition for Telepro. He is the voice of this edition. I was not in Rotterdam (Netherlands) in 2021 when Barbara Pravi finished second, but from memory, it has been a long time since I saw such enthusiasm from a French proposal. »
Marta Cagnola, an Italian colleague who officiates on Radio 24, also praises the “sensational” voice of the French singer. She was inside the Malmö Arena during the rehearsal. “We feel that this is a performance that was made for television. When we are in the room, we probably feel the performance less intensely than through the screen,” she notes.
As for the bookmakers…
However, she is willing to bet that the public in her country could vote for Slimane. “Italians tend to pride themselves on having refined taste. So his vocal performance should please them much more than some of the more kitsch proposals that are getting people talking. »
At the time of writing, the effect of its repetition is not felt on the side of the bookmakers. Slimane remains the seventh favorite for victory among bettors.
Things will perhaps start to move in this direction this Wednesday evening, depending on the reactions of the audience during the second rehearsal (for which the public pays their place). And more surely on Thursday, during the second semi-final (broadcast from 9 p.m. on Culturebox, channel 14) when the entire three minutes will be revealed for the whole world to see. We will then know if the public has fallen in love with Slimane, confirming his chances of victory.