Get the full coverage from the first dress rehearsal of the second semi-final, currently taking place on the Eurovision 2026 stage in Vienna. One by one, Bulgaria, Azerbaijan, Romania, Luxembourg, Czechia, Armenia, Switzerland, Cyprus, Latvia, Denmark, Australia, Ukraine, Albania, Malta and Norway will take the stage. We will be providing updates throughout the rehearsal with all the details received by our editorial team.

Photo: EBU

Today at 15:30 CET, the first dress rehearsal began ahead of the second semi-final broadcast, which will take place tomorrow at 21:00 CET (Thursday, May 14). Just before another dress rehearsal takes place tonight at 21:00 CET, we’re here to report everything happening on stage in real time from Vienna.

As a reminder, this year the countries that automatically qualify for the Grand Final will also perform during the semi-finals, but their songs will not be eligible for voting at this stage. In the second semi-final, France, the host Austria and United Kingdom will take the stage.

Make sure to click the refresh button so you can continue following along during the rehearsals!

First Semi-Final – Initial Overview:

At the opening of the show, a video is projected on the screen featuring hosts Victoria Swarovski and Michael Ostrowski. They perform a version of last year’s winning song, “Wasted Love,” filled with numerous vocal slips and technical mishaps.

The staging is almost identical to the original performance by JJ, though punctuated by comedic errors: the host falls off the stage, water splashes on them, and the entire stage eventually goes up in flames. After the video segment concludes, the hosts emerge from the physical scenery on stage to officially open the contest.

1. Bulgaria – Dara, “Bangaranga”:

The Bulgarian stage is not ready on time, and several shots of the audience are shown before the performance begins.

Dara takes the Eurovision stage wearing a pink tank top and burgundy fur shorts, accompanied by four dancers. They begin the performance on a set designed to look like a waiting room.

The dancers are positioned upside down on red chairs, and the entire act starts with Dara’s face appearing inverted. The camera angles are very intriguing, and the television presentation as a whole looks amazing.

The room begins to rotate around Dara; the singer and dancers move energetically on the chairs, creating the illusion that they are the ones rotating rather than the set itself. Eventually, the set opens up, the chairs move out of the frame, and the stage goes completely dark, highlighted only by lighting and video art on the floor.

While the vocal performance wasn’t 100%, the stage presence and presentation completely make up for it.

2. Azerbaijan – JIVA, “Just Go”:

Jiva takes the stage with the floor shrouded in smoke. There are white curtains on stage, and the singer emerges from behind them. She begins the song in Azeri.

Behind the curtain, a mysterious male figure is visible. The first chorus is performed in English. On the LED screens, there is video art of billowing white fabric alongside scenes depicting various moments—both good and bad—of a relationship (varying based on whether the lyrics focus on their love or the command “Just Go”).

The dancer approaches her, but she repels him, successfully escaping toward the catwalk while he attempts to pull her back with ropes. In the final video art, he is seen walking out through a door as the song ends, leaving Jiba to finish the performance alone in the center of the catwalk.

3. Romania – Alexandra Căpitănescu, “Choke Me”:

The Romanian stage is not ready on time, and several shots of the audience are shown before the performance begins.

Alexandra Căpitănescu starts the performance at the center of the catwalk with her back to the audience, while two of her band members hold her using white glowing ropes. The other band members are positioned in the center of the stage, along with a mysterious figure wearing a white cloak with its face covered.

The rest of the band takes their positions on stage, and Alexandra advances toward them, though she remains with her back to the crowd. The staging resembles an exorcism ritual performed by Alexandra against the figure in white. Numerous electrical cables are featured throughout the performance.

Before the high note, there is a pause of a second and a half, which she executes successfully. At the end of the performance, the stage is bathed in red light as fire erupts from the stage floor. The performance is particularly captivating, and the vocal delivery is perfectly fine.

4. Luxembourg – Eva Marija, “Mother Nature”:

Eva Marija is positioned at the center of the catwalk, playing her violin like a small guitar, with a microphone stand designed to look like a tree. Interesting graphics are displayed on the screen throughout the performance.

As Eva advances toward the main stage, the LED screens reveal a world of nature, stars, and butterflies. She touches the floor and appears to hold a point of light that was resting there. When she reaches the main stage, light points are used to create an effect like fireflies illuminating the camera.

Eva spins as crew members run around her to bring her the violin. She plays it (not live, of course). The vocal performance was stable until the very end, where some off-notes were heard, but the staging remains beautiful.

5. Czechia – Daniel Zizka, “Crossroads”:

Daniel Žižka begins his performance seated on the floor, surrounded by circular mirrors positioned both behind him and at the front of the stage. Overhead lighting illuminates him, creating a look that feels exactly like a high-budget music video. The arena remains completely dark.

As Daniel stands and approaches one of the front mirrors, two mirrors are positioned facing each other, creating a “hall of mirrors” effect that shows the singer multiplied. Impressively, the cameraman is nowhere to be seen in the frame (ahem… take note!). At one point, all the mirrors close around Daniel in a circle, creating a stunning visual effect before opening back up to a wave of color washing over the stage.

Vocally, Daniel is incredible, hitting every mark. While the performance is hypnotic on television, it feels a bit less impactful as a live stage show (reminiscent of Switzerland’s approach last year). The overall atmosphere is very similar to JJ from last year, but with significantly stronger vocals.

*France – Monroe, “Regarde!”:

Following the Czech performance, a break occurs where host Michael introduces the French entry, which—as a member of the “Big Five”—advances automatically to the final.

Monroe starts on a small, white circular platform with flashing lights pulsing around her. The camera rotates around her, and as she turns her back to the audience, five dancers join her. The production makes heavy use of the overhead stage lighting.

They march down the catwalk accompanied by a turquoise stripe on the LED floor and a thick layer of smoke. The camera angles shift rapidly, maintaining a high-energy pace, and the screen displays fireworks during the climax. Monroe eventually ascends another raised platform on the catwalk as the entire arena fills with smoke.

The vocal performance is solid, though not 100% precise, but the television production is nothing short of amazing.

Afterward, “Professor Eurovision” strikes again with a video segment where host Victoria Swarovski teaches a class about LGBTQ+ history in Eurovision. Dana International is shown for only a single second; in our personal opinion, she was brushed over quite brutally, failing to mention the ground she broke as the first transgender artist in the contest.

6. Armenia – Simón, “Paloma Rumba”:

Simón begins his performance inside a closed structure resembling an elevator, wearing a suit covered in sticky notes. The elevator door opens and closes frequently throughout the performance, and each time it opens, Simón and the dancers are doing something different.

The elevator eventually splits in two, revealing office boxes on the LED screens, followed by close-ups of Simón’s face. Yellow “Paloma Rumba” subtitles also scroll across the screen.

He removes his jacket as he and the dancers ramp up the energy with wild choreography. They knock over a pile of office boxes and run toward the center of the catwalk, where Simón finishes the act balanced on the knees of two of his dancers.

• Vocals: Not 100% perfect.

• Staging: Highly televisual and engaging.

7. Switzerland – Veronica Fusaro, “Alice”:

Veronica Fusaro begins the performance with an exceptionally long white cable attached to her microphone and a white stripe running across the stage. She walks through a set that is almost entirely dark, while one of the dancers pulls her along using the cable.

Intense white and “electric” lighting accompanies the chorus, designed to look like a musical frequency wave. The four dancers perform with their backs to the audience as a giant prop filled with red strings is brought onto the stage. All of them enter the prop, with Veronica struggling to break free from it.

Veronica “plays” an instrument (not live, of course) as strings are tied to her; she then runs toward the catwalk and finishes the performance in a pleading pose on the floor. Notably, there is a live backing singer—a rare sight in recent years of the contest.

While the vocal performance was inaccurate and there were technical glitches with several camera angles, the overall staging is absolutely insane.

A break follows the Swiss song while the Cypriot stage is prepared.

8. Cyprus – Antigoni, “JALLA”:

Antigoni begins her performance on a raised platform designed to look like a table set with dishes. Behind her, the LED screens display columns from the Roman era. Four dancers join her, holding white fabrics and dancing with them.

The vocal performance is not good at all, and Antigoni seems to be struggling significantly. During the act, she drags a white “crown” chair and dances on the table, with the dancers alternating between being on the table and on the stage floor. The lighting is a vibrant orange.

In a dramatic moment, Antigoni lies down on the table in a pose reminiscent of Eleni Foureira. As the singer and dancers advance toward the catwalk, a large amount of fire erupts on stage, and two strips of fire conclude the performance.

• Verdict: The song looks amazing on camera, but the vocal performance needs a lot of improvement.

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A break follows the Cypriot song, during which host Michael introduces the Austrian entry. He explains that as the host nation, Austria does not compete in the semi-final but will appear automatically in the Grand Final.

*Austria – Cosmó, “Tanzschein”:

Even after the postcard, the stage was still not ready on time. A few shots of the audience were shown while host Michael Ostrowski filled the delay by discussing Austria’s history in the Eurovision Song Contest.

Cosmo begins the performance lying on the stage with a star painted over his eye, surrounded by dancers wearing silver animal masks. The text “Dance away you inner animal” is displayed on the floor.

Once Cosmo and the dancers stand up, they move into a single line to perform their iconic choreography. The routine includes acrobatic movements, and the staging features two wide, grated walls that the dancers climb like a jungle gym. Remarkably, they continue the choreography even while hanging from these ladders.

On the LED screens, various animal drawings appear as Cosmo runs toward his electric guitar player at the center of the catwalk. A firework erupts from the stage floor as the rest of the group joins him.

• Vocals: The performance was vocally inaccurate.

• Staging: There was an attempt to replicate a specific visual effect from the national final – using the LED screens to “frame” each dancer in a square – but it didn’t quite land because the dancers weren’t positioned correctly.

Despite the technical hitches, it remains a high-energy centerpiece for the host nation.

A break follows the Austrian performance, with the host interviewing delegations in the Green Room while the Latvian stage is being set.

9. Latvia – Atvara, “Ēnā”:

Atvara stands alone on stage, positioned in front of a sloped platform. Her shadow is projected onto the stage via targeted lighting, though her movements aren’t always perfectly synchronized with the shadow. The staging remains very similar to her national final performance.

The LED screens feature a close-up of a whiskey glass as it evaporates. Meanwhile, a child-like figure representing Atvara appears on the sloped platform.

Video art of shattered glass swirls around the singer like a vortex. Atvara concludes the performance as the lights fade to black.

• Vocals: An excellent vocal performance.

10. Denmark – Søren Torpegaard Lund, “Før vi går hjem”:

Søren Torpegaard Lund begins his performance in front of a transparent room prop containing his dancers. He interacts with the structure, touching the walls and moving rhythmically, before holding onto a ladder on the side of the room.

He eventually climbs onto the roof of the “room” while maintaining constant interaction with the dancers inside, as smoke continuously fills the structure. Søren then enters the room to dance closely with the group before everyone exits, with the dancers pushing him toward the center of the stage for the finale.

• Vocals: The performance was not entirely precise, but he executed the high note perfectly.

• Visuals & Pyro: The LED screens display fire, accompanied by orange lighting toward the end. The pyrotechnics were minimal, featuring only a single firework from the stage floor.

Verdict: It is still too early to tell if this is a winning performance.

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Following the Danish act, there is a break. The hosts take the stage to introduce a video segment showing the contestants’ first reactions to seeing the Eurovision stage in person.

11. Australia – Delta Goodrem, “Eclipse”:

The Australian stage isn’t quite ready yet, so the hosts are currently filling time in the Green Room, chatting with the various delegations while the tech crew works their magic. It’s that classic live-broadcast tension!

Delta Goodrem finally takes the stage, and the setup is nothing short of grand. The staging features a harp, a grand piano positioned right in the center of the catwalk, and a massive, glowing image of a full lunar eclipse dominating the main stage. Delta begins the song right in the heart of that moon prop, with the floor completely shrouded in thick smoke and the LED screens twinkling with endless stars. The camera work is particularly dynamic here, swinging in half-circles around her to catch every glint of her shimmering dress.

As she advances toward the catwalk, the atmosphere intensifies. She makes her way to the grand piano for a beautifully moody shot, playing through a heavy haze of smoke while the screens transition between stunning solar and lunar eclipse visuals. For the big finale, Delta actually climbs onto the piano and is hoisted even higher by an integrated elevating platform. Behind her, a spectacular “waterfall” of fireworks erupts – a high-drama visual that immediately brings to mind Yuval Raphael’s iconic staging from last year. It is a massive, polished, and undeniably cinematic moment for Australia.

12. Ukraine – LELÉKA, “Ridnym”:

LELÉKA starts her performance positioned at the side of the stage, slowly making her way toward the other side where a traditional string instrument player is stationed. A wide white stripe cuts across the stage floor, providing a sharp visual path. High above, two thin, long white fabrics are meant to drop from the ceiling, but we’ve just seen the first technical glitch of the set – one of them failed to fall on cue.

As smoke billows in from the sides of the stage, the lighting palette shifts dramatically from neutral tones to a vibrant mix of red and blue. The colors eventually wash back into a stark white for the climax, where four long white fabrics descend from the rafters. Unfortunately, the technical gremlins are still at work: three of them fell properly, but one remained stuck, marking the second staging mishap of the rehearsal.

When it came to the vocals, Leleka took on the big high note with a lot of ambition. She came incredibly close to nailing it but seemed to lose her breath right in the middle of the hold. Despite the technical hiccups with the props and that small vocal slip, the overall performance remains vocally excellent. It’s a powerful moment, though the production team will definitely need to sort out those stubborn fabrics before the live show!

* UK – Look Mum No Computer, “Eins Zwei Drei”:

Look Mum No Computer takes the stage for a performance that looks like a tech enthusiast’s fever dream. The stage is cluttered with 12 tables, and his dancers are rocking a retro-tech aesthetic with old computer screens covering their faces. The singer starts tucked away at a corner table in the back while the dancers swarm him, delivering various pieces of office equipment. In a clever bit of staging, they use foam boards to create a “cage” effect around him, trapping him in a cubicle-gone-wrong.

The energy shifts when he flips one of the tables over, revealing it’s actually his custom electronic instrument. He grabs a cable and starts “powering up” the dancers, who have now swapped their screens for furry, light-green vintage monitors. It’s wonderfully weird. They hoist him up and carry him while he lies across the table, and they begin flipping the other tables to show off the electronic components hidden underneath.

As they move toward the catwalk, the dancers start nodding in different directions, successfully getting the crowd to clap along. The climax features one of the dancers pulling off a flip just as a firework erupts from the stage floor. Vocally, the performance was a bit all over the place and the staging feels quite chaotic, but this is one of those entries that might completely transform once we see the polished television edit.

13. Albania – Alis, “Nân”:

Alis begins the performance on his knees with the stage floor shrouded in smoke. A maternal figure watches him from the LED screens until a beam of light passes to him and he stands up. White lighting from the stage floor pulses in rhythm with the song. Before the chorus, numerous mothers appear on the screens, followed by male figures singing toward Alis. The backing vocals are live. The camera circles him as his mother walks toward him holding a watch. While the high note was inaccurate, the visuals of wings in the background are striking. His mother removes his glasses, strokes his face, hands him the watch, and walks away. Some members of the EuroMix team finished the performance in tears.

14. Malta – Aidan, “Bella”:

The Maltese stage was not ready on time, so several shots of the audience were shown before the performance began.

Aidan starts the act with an overhead camera angle. He is surrounded by illuminated arches – resembling a garden gazebo – which is the largest prop of the year. The camera moves outside the arches as they sparkle around him, and a female figure in a dress is projected onto the arches, multiplied and rotating around him. He exits the prop, moves around it, and enters it again. The stage itself rotates while Aidan stands on it with wind blowing through his hair as the colors shift to red. The vocal performance was good, though most of us preferred the staging from the national final.

15. Norway – Jonas Lovv, “Ya Ya Ya”:

The Norwegian stage is not ready on time, and several shots of the audience are shown before the performance begins.

Jonas Lovv starts the performance with his back to the audience, while his musicians are positioned on a red raised platform. He joins them on the platform. On the LED screens, the word “AY” appears and is multiplied many times. During the chorus, the words “Ya Ya Ya” move across the screens in time with the rhythm of the song. The stage colors are red and white.

Jonas approaches his dancers, moves from the raised platform to the main stage, and then runs toward the catwalk. A firework erupts from the stage floor, and the high notes were inaccurate. More fireworks erupt from the stage floor to conclude the song.

The EuroMix team members who watched the rehearsal predict the following qualifiers for the final (in alphabetical order):

Thank you for staying with us!

Join us at 21:00 CET for the second dress rehearsal!

Eurovision 2026: the 70th edition of the contest will take place in Vienna, Austria, on May 12th, 14th, and 16th, 2026. The Wiener Stadthalle arena, which will host the event, is expected to accommodate around 16,000 spectators per show. The contest returns to Austria following the nation’s third historic win with the song “Wasted Love”, performed by JJ. It will be Austria’s third time hosting Eurovision, after previous editions held in the country in 1967 and 2015.