After many months and much controversy (see here), Ukraine had finally selected the beautiful and talented Mika Newton to represent them at Eurovision. Unfortunately, the song was instantly forgettable. I’ve listened to “Angel” dozens of times and I still wouldn’t be able to sing/whistle/hum it for you if I were forced to at gunpoint. But, the Ukrainians are excellent at turning lemons into lemonade (even if the lemons were purchased from the back of some shady looking guy’s truck, left in a dark corner of your basement for years, and recently rediscovered covered in enough fuzzy mold to make it look like gerbils have invaded). That’s why “Angel” is the perfect song for the inaugural “Eurovision Lessons” series, where we will examine important things one should know if one wants to be successful at Eurovision.
Today, we’ll examine the importance of staging, i.e. the visual presentation of the song. Many entries throughout the years have tried to improve their chances of winning by adding a visual punch to the performance, with mixed results. Usually, this involves dated dance moves, surprise appearances by celebrities, puppets, or unusual props. “Angel” is by far the most successful application of this technique. Watch as the go-nowhere song is almost completely ignored in favor of the sand artist and her spellbinding use of…sand. By electing to focus on a novelty most have never seen, “Angel” was propelled from “lucky to qualify” to a respectable 4th place finish; an impressive result at a song contest for a song no one remembers.
Angel
Мiка Ньютон (Mika Newton)
Ukraine
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