Big Five & Sweden perform LIVE in Semi-Finals
For the very first time, the artists from the Big Five countries - France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom – and host nation Sweden will each perform their entries in full live during the Semi-Finals, reads a press release of Eurovision.
In previous years, just a short clip of each of their rehearsals was played during the Semi-Finals. Now, the Big Five and Sweden will be able to step onto the Eurovision stage and showcase their entries to viewers live alongside the competing acts.
In the Semi-Finals, the Big Five and Sweden will be performing on the same night that they have been drawn to vote in, in a draw that took place back in January:
First Semi-Final: 🇩🇪 Germany 🇸🇪 Sweden 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
Second Semi-Final: 🇫🇷 France 🇮🇹 Italy 🇪🇸 Spain
And you won’t have to wait for the interval to see the songs – the three additional performances in each Semi-Final will be slotted in between the competing countries’ acts.
On Saturday 11 May, voting will open just before the first song is performed. Viewers at home will be able to cast their votes as the songs are performed, rather than waiting until all entries have been presented, as has been the case since public voting was introduced in 1997 (except in 2010 and 2011 when voting also began at the start of the show).
Additionally, fans in non-participating countries (Rest of The World) will now have nearly 24 hours to vote for their favourite songs before each of the live shows begin. Online voting will open for the Rest of The World immediately after the second dress rehearsal for each Semi-Final and Grand Final has finished the previous night, and will stay open until the live shows begin.
