Tonight the jury show for the second semi-final takes place for the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest. We here at ESCToday are here to bring you the latest from the show and give you our review on each performance.

01 Latvia: Justs – Heartbeat

Just keep the tight jeans-t-shirt-jacket style as always, but this time he’s going all black. It’s a strong opening for this semifinal as Justs manages to hold the performance by himself using the powerful voice he had been presenting in the rehearsals. Likely a qualifier.

02 Poland: Michał Szpak – Color of your life

Being a little off beat in the beginning of the performance, Michał goes right on the track as the chorus comes. It is clear that his emotions are being expressed by this song as his eyes shine with tears throughout the whole performance. The blue-white-red staging goes well with the performance, however his vocal abilities are not on the top. Might qualify.

03 Switzerland: Rykka – The last of our kind

Rykka goes back to the blue curls for this performance, with smoke surrounding her at the beginning of the performance. Her vocals are much improved from previous performance, however the whole stage appearance is not the best possible for this performance.

04 Israel: Hovi Star – Made of stars

This is the best staging that Made of stars could have been asking for. With a dark stage, Hovi manages to be the light and bring the emotions and the message of the song to the audience at the arena and at home through the screens, along with the rhythmic gymnastic dancers, asking us all to dance as we were made of stars.

05 Belarus: IVAN – Help you fly

One of the most complicated performances as the show includes various holograms in Ivan’s performance. The staging work perfectly with the song, however Ivan’s interaction with the whole set and the vocal appearance might make it less impressive than it should be.

06 Serbia: ZAA Sanja Vučić – Goodbye (Shelter)

Sanja’s vocals are known to be among the strongest in this year’s competition, however they were a little weak in tonight’s performance. The typical Serbian performance works here as well with the backing singers/dancers and the message is being delivered clearly just as Sanja wishes. Should qualify without any problem, however Serbia will have to work harder in the final in order to get a top placing.

07 Ireland: Nikcy Byrne – Sunlight

Nicky tries to give us his Sunlight in the most energetic way as possible, having two drummers on stage and accompanied with a choir of backing singers. However, In a year of strong entries, even a good performance for a mid-range simple pop song will not be enough for qualifying.

08 FYR Macedonia: Kaliopi – Dona

Kaliopi is no stranger for the Eurovision stage and Dona is performed with confidence as she feels herself at home with the vocal performance and the camera angles. This balkan rock-ballad song is so different than the other songs of this year that it might not appeal to the voters, or on the other hand, be special enough to qualify.

09 Lithuania: Donny Montell – I’ve been waiting for this night

Justs’ jacket has turned white for Donny Montell’s performance, which works mostly on the energy he brings to the stage and his expressions for the camera, using special videoart and pyro. Being alone on stage requires perfection in order to deliver such a song (unlike his previous entry Love is blind which was more of an uptempo ballad) in a good way, and Donny might not be there for tonight’s performance.

10 Australia: Dami Im – Sound of silence

The biggest applause from the crowd and the press goes to Dami Im, providing a touching performance sitting on a huge box and playing with on-screen projected devices, transmitting the message of being alone in the days where we are all connected digitally. It is a simple performance but the vocal abilities of Dami Im shakes the Globe Arena and goes over everything. Possible winner for this semifinal

11 Slovenia: ManuElla – Blue and red

ManuElla takes to the stage next with her country-pop song, taking to the stage alone. The singer herself is later joined onstage by an acrobat wh. ManuElla has a generally strong performance throughout in terms of vocals, however it is unsure how well this will stand out between 2 more strong songs and performance.

12 Bulgaria: Poli Genova – If love was a crime

Another returning artist at this year’s competition is Bulgaria’s Poli Genova, performing on the Eurovision stage for a second time. Poli wears a futuristic-style outfit; black material covers the sides of her body whilst a nude-colour covers the front. LED lights are also placed on the front of her outfit which shine towards the end. Poli’s performance is strong vocally and with the choreography to fit, Bulgaria has strong chances of qualification this year.

13 Denmark: Lighthouse X – Soldiers of love

Danish trio Lighthouse X take to the stage next, all performing alongside each other throughout. The performance itself is not too dissimilar to their national final show, with only small changes being made such as additional pyrotechnics and alternative camera angles. Whilst the performance fits with the song, performing in between Bulgaria and Ukraine could affect Denmark’s chances of qualification.

14 Ukraine: Jamala – 1944

Jamala takes to the Eurovision stage next this evening, performing alone onstage. The stage throughout the performance lights up in different colours and effects, to fit with the song itself and to convey the story of her song. A huge applause from the audience as the drama builds through the song, making Ukraine a strong contender at this year’s contest.

15 Norway: Agnete – Icebreaker

Taking centre-stage next this evening is Norway’s Agnete, wearing her white outfit worn at the Norwegian national final. Agnete performs in a raised podium with a backing dancer performing on a separate podium behind her. Agnete’s vocals are slightly shaky at the beginning of the performance, but as the song builds she becomes stronger and stronger right until the end.

16 Georgia: Nika Kocharov & Young Georgian Lolitaz – Midnight gold

Georgia’s representative Nika Kocharov & Young Georgian Lolitaz are onstage next; a black and white filter is used to open their performance. A number of camera effects are used throughout the performance including mirror reflections. Flashing yellow and white lights fill the arena for the latter half of the performance. Whilst the song itself has received a mixed reaction from the public, the performance and staging works well and makes the entry stronger.

17 Albania: Eneda Tarifa – Fairytale

It’s time for Eneda Tarifa’s magical Fairytale. Eneda Tarifa is all golden for tonight’s performance wearing a long golden dress which stretches all the way to make a leaf-shape on the floor. Having three backing singers on stage as well, it might not be one of the strongest of the evening, but this oriental styled ballad gets its place between the energetic entries of Georgia and Belgium.

18 Belgium: Laura Tesoro – What’s the pressure

The final artist onstage tonight is Laura Tesoro, bringing plenty of energy and fun to the Eurovision stage and bringing the arena to life. Laura’s performance is lively throughout with choreography to really add the fun-factor to the arena. Laura interacts with the audience in the build up to the final chorus, receiving a positive response at the arena. Bringing such a positive dance song to close the show could be of benefit to Laura, and with a such a strong performance Belgium could receive a positive result.

Due to a technical difficulty, Georgia was allowed to perform their song again once all the other entries had been performed.

The dummy results of tonight’s show, which have no impact on the actual show itself, were as follows:

• Denmark
• Bulgaria
• Latvia
• Israel
• Poland
• Ukraine
• Norway
• FYR Macedonia
• Albania
• Switzerland