With just hours to go before Europe’s biggest night of sequins and geopolitical tension, Eurovision’s grand final rehearsal suffered an awkward technical mishap that forced organisers to abruptly restart the show. Friday’s rehearsal at Vienna’s Stadthalle arena hit problems almost immediately when a curtain failed to open properly during the opening segment, partially obscuring last year’s winner JJ as he performed his winning track Wasted Love. Instead of the dramatic opening organisers were presumably hoping for, media and invited guests were left watching Austria’s Eurovision champion trapped behind staging. The rehearsal was quickly halted and restarted, with the curtain functioning properly on the second attempt.
Thankfully for frazzled organisers, the rest of the run-through appeared to continue largely without major disaster, although not entirely without chaos. At one point, stage props for Alexandra Capitanescu’s pop-metal performance of Choke Me reportedly failed to arrive in time, forcing presenters Victoria Swarovski and Michael Ostrowski to improvise live on stage while the production team scrambled behind the scenes.
Running Order and Performances
The rehearsal opened with Soren Torpegaard Lund representing Denmark with For Vi Gar Hjem, mirroring the running order planned for Saturday night’s final. Meanwhile, Israel’s contestant Noam Bettan completed his rehearsal performance of Michelle without interruption, following months of renewed controversy surrounding Israel’s inclusion in the contest. During Tuesday’s semi-final, Bettan’s qualification was overshadowed by audible boos and shouting from sections of the audience, while protests have continued across Vienna over Israel’s participation amid the ongoing war in Gaza. Several countries — including Ireland, Iceland, Spain, Slovenia and Netherlands — are boycotting this year’s contest.
Amnesty International Criticism
Earlier this week, Amnesty International criticised the European Broadcasting Union for refusing to suspend Israel from Eurovision, calling the decision a ‘blatant double standard’ in comparison to Russia’s exclusion following the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
UK and Other Performers
Elsewhere in Friday’s rehearsal, UK entrant Look Mum No Computer — real name Sam Battle — rehearsed his chaotic synth-pop performance of Eins, Zwei, Drei in 14th place in the running order. Former Neighbours star Delta Goodrem also took to the stage for Australia, while former Love Island contestant Antigoni Buxton rehearsed for Cyprus ahead of her performance later in the final. Another full rehearsal is due to take place Friday evening in front of a live audience before the grand final airs on Saturday night on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. And if Eurovision has taught us anything over the years, it’s that if the curtain malfunction is the biggest disaster by the end of the weekend, organisers should probably count themselves lucky.
