Before tonight’s #UMK18 show, the press was invited to attend the dress rehearsal and the premiere of tonight’s show.
The opening number is performed by the host of the evening, Krista Siegfrids singing a Finnish version of Suzy‘s “Quero ser tua” (ESC Portugal 2014) together with lots of dancers dressed in orange and holding blue balloons. It has almost become a tradition for Krista to perform a cool opening number in UMK. Not surprisingly she is also making several costume changes throughout the show.
Saara’s songs will be presented in the same order as their official release (Monsters, Domino, Queens).
1. Monsters
“Monsters” is soooo good, I was so impressed!
The song starts with Saara standing inside of a black cage with black clothes. Quite soon though everything turns into a colourful celebration. The dancers and singers are wearing black, even with black wings. There is a part where the lights turn off and reveal the neon stripes in clothing and stage elements. Seeing the show, the song seems even stronger.
2. Domino
“Domino” is almost better than “Monsters”. Sooooo brilliant… gosh!
This might be the surprise of the evening. The show is very emotional and Saara was really using her voice, especially during some long notes at the end of the song. The domino blocks look fantastic on stage and create a nice contrast to Saara’s sophisticated costume. In the middle of the show, Saara is attached into one domino block, which then started rotating – so she spent part of the time upside down.
3. Queens
Wow, so much happening in one show!
There is definitely a lot of effort put into this show. The stage element is a “locomotive” which is turned around to reveal glamorous stairs. The dancers appear in shiny costumes and Saara looked like a queen when she climbed up the stairs.
Gallery: https://good-evening-europe.dk/2018/03/03/exclusive-pictures-saara-aaltos-queens-show-umk/
Which song win will?
After seeing the shows, it’s still quite hard to predict the winning song. “Domino” turned out to be stronger than expected, but “Monsters” would be the safe bet – both the song and show support each other. “Queens” has an eye-catching, almost ladygaga-like show, but is it a bit too much for the average viewer? In any case, we can be sure to get a great entry and show for Finland this year.
The jury of UMK18
The international jury consists of France, Estonia, Italy, Switzerland, Norway, Portugal, UK and Iceland. William Lee Adams from Wiwibloggs represents UK and Eurovision artist Hera Björk represents Iceland as jury members in the international jury.
The international guest of the show is Melanie C. She performed her hit “I turn to you” as an interval act. The show featured some male dancers moving in two big triangle structures.
Mikko Leppilampi (host of Eurovision Song Contest 2007) is interviewed during the show.
The surprise act is Cat Cat (ESC Finland 1994) with Krista. They perform the song “Bye bye baby” together.
In the press conference, Krista interviewed both Saara and Melanie C. Watch the press conference:
