Eurovision 2018 | Day 1: The First Rehearsals Have Begun!

We've finally made it to Lisbon, and the long schedule of rehearsals has kicked off today, with 10 countries rehearsing on the Eurovision stage.

We get our first look at the LED-less stage, which has dismayed some Eurovision fans, whilst other have welcomed the stripping back of the show following on from Salvador's win last year.

So let's get started with the first countries to take to the stage for their first rehearsals!

Azerbaijan

AISEL was first up to rehearse, and we got the chance to see the stage in action. With what appeared to be large glaciers on stage, AISEL makes good use of the iconic Eurovision wind machine, and looks stunning all in white, with draping sleeves. She is later joined by four backing singers, all on glaciers.

She performs the song confidently, although you do get a sense of unease as she goes through the first run-throughs. However, the vocals are confident, and much improved from her pre-party appearances.

Iceland

Ari has been impressing the Eurovision community with his pre-party and press appearances, and we really hoped he would get his charm across in his performance.

Dressed in a white suit with red aztec-style detailing on the back and shoulders, along with a red shirt, and also accompanied by five backing vocalists (including songwriter Thorun), we can't help feeling that Ari's suit makes him look older than his years. However, as always, his vocals are bang on, especially "that high note" and we do get to see that Icelandic charm come across in his performance.

Albania

Eugent was third in the schedule for today, and lots of fans have been excited to see his Eurovision performance following his Eurovision in Concert performance in Amsterdam.

Dressed in a studded jacket over a long white shirt, Eugent's vocals during the first run-through were as we expected, however there appeared to be a problem with playback, as he performed the first half of the song slightly out of time to the backing track. However, the following run through's were bang on, and the high notes he pulled really do give you goosebumps.

The backdrop and lighting are effective, with a blue backdrop during the verses and red/orange flashing lighting during the powerful rock chorus. This song, and performance, has power and stage presence, and it will really stand out after Iceland's ballad.

Belgium

Sennek from Belgium was next up on stage with her first rehearsal. All alone on stage, and dressed all in black, Sennek gave a rather sultry performance of her song. Vocally, she delivered her song very well, and her unique voice definetley stood out in the arena!

From the first rehearsal, we can see that there doesn't appear to be much happening on stage; however, Sennek does move around and she has a lot of stage presence, enough to fill a 20,000 capacity arena!

Czech Republic

Mikolas and his back pack are back on stage! Mikolas looks every bit cool with his glasses and bow tie, and is accompanied by two dancers either side of him. His dancers are very energetic and bringing a lot of fun and character to proceedings. Mikolas shines on stage with his infectious charm and stage presence.