Eurovision 2021 Big-5 & Netherlands: First rehearsals

Voilà! It's time for one of the bookmakers favorite this year. The staging and concept is near identical to what we've seen in the national final but more intimate. Barbara's dress today was also identical to the national final but a more stylish. The performance starts with a smoky background and Barbara singing. She is alone on stage whilst the animation character towards the bridge of the song is kept and later turning the floor drop with spotlights. Towards the end the camera angles are very close to Barbara giving that shaky effect. Vocally this is undeniably good.

Now that's what we call energy. Jendrik is joined by three female vocalists and by a hand with two fingers up, not one... Sorry! The ukulele is obviously present in the performance (in its shiny version) and he is wearing a pink blazer with blue pants. The LEDs on stage go from grey colouring with hateful messages to the colorful dust present in the music video eachtime that the break of the song kicks in. As for the speaking part of the song, towards the end, it seems that Jendrik is saving a surprise and will say something unexpected? By the last chorus, Jendrik and his team walk up to stage B where a final dance break happens.

Måneskin took the stage for the very fist time and the energy was through the roof. It would've been perfect if COVID-19 didn't exist and a whole crowd would be standing in the Rotterdam Ahoy arena as the first shot is actually from the backstage into the stage, you'd see a full arena with flags all over the place. It's not the case. The vocalist opens the performance and joins the rest of the group in the middle of the stage. The baterist is standing on his own platform while the two guitarists stand each on one side of the stage. In fact, this seems to be the first time an act uses the laterals of the stage. The LEDs are covered with silhouette of each of the band's member and by the end there's an explosion of fireworks and fire. It's an extremely energetic performance.

The host country next! The performance starts off with a close shot of Jeangu and two backing vocalists behind him. Soon after the backing vocalists switch to Jeangu's front and later on each side of the singer. The backdrop of the main stage is of a wall trying to be broken with cracks and as the first chorus hits, lyrics of the song appear. Later during the performance a dancer appears in front of Jeangu and later appearing on the second stage doing a chorography. As the song progresses, Jeangu, the dancers and backing vocalists all gather on the catwalk in between stages and the LED screen behind them turns to orange. Towards the last chorus, a blast of colors are shown not only on the LED but also on the stage which gives it a tribe feeling. Jeangu himself is wearing a leather outfit topped with a blue jacket. Vocally he is quite good and song is different from the rest of the songs this year.

Vamos a España. Blas steps on the Rotterdam stage with a revamp! The first part of the song starts off like the original version. Blas Canto starts the performance singing acapella. As the song starts to progress, the stage turns with bright blue lights and moon in eclipse in the backdrop. Here the revamp kicks in. The moon from the backdrop disappears and a moon prop descends from the ceiling. Towards the end of the song, the blue lights turn to red. Blas is vocally good but high notes are not reached.

The United Kingdom is putting in the effort! James Newman starts his performance in his own little stage, a black cylindrical. Just like in the music video, he is wearing a long leather jacket and a shiny neckless. Next to him are two huge trumpets and the LEDs are switching between red and black colours. As soon as the first "light up the room!" echoes the Rotterdam Ahoy arena, James meets his four dancers – also holding their own trumpets. There are a few dance moves here and there. When the bridge of the song starts, Newman is back on his alternative stage where it gets dark and eventually surrounded by white lasers. Towards the end, the enormous saxophones have dropped and are now on the floor.