This is the day many have been waiting for.

It’s day three and Conchita has arrived in the arena. To put it simply, she takes to the stage, and takes over the stage. For this performance she is wearing a long, figure hugging, black, dress but will this be the outfit for the show? I don’t think so. The set is simple to start with. Ms Wurst is singing in semi-darkness but at an appropriate moment in the song the spotlights reveal her. There are now two banks of light behind her, one below and one above the podium on which she stands. During the final part of the performance the screen effect looks like a cosmic explosion. Of course this is her Rising like a phoenix!The members of the press who are here at this hour applaud after seeing this on screen.

In complete contrast Lithuania have a dance orientated performance, very like the one in their National Final. The male dancer has changed. The beard gives that away! The two perform with great synchronicity except when Vilija exerts the role of what seems to be a dominatrix with the guy being pulled off the floor by his shirt and, later on, being pushed away from her. For the final part of the show huge jets of steam rise from the two sides of the stage closest to the standing audience.

Finland’s representatives are on next. This indie rock song is so slick and the staging has one gimmick, dozens of spotlights which immerse the stage, sweeping to and fro during parts of the performance. Softengine sing Something Better perfectly and are a breath of fresh air. This must be rated as one of the country’s most contemporary entries.

Its Kasey’s turn to experience the huge arena for Ireland. She and Can-linn are now on the big stage and many people were curious as to how this would translate to something other than the Late Late Show studio. The floor and background are using Irish motifs. From above you are looking at perhaps an Irish broach. During the first few rehearsals Kasey was having trouble moving as her dress spreads out around her, making it a little difficult to walk. One of the main comments from the original small tv set performance had been the use of the dancers (who are now in kilts). They are using the large stage area but during the routine they look, like Kasey, a little uncomfortable. There is another day to perfect this so let’s hope they work it out.

As it was close to lunchtime maybe the Cheesecake should come out, and so it did in the form of Teo from Belarus. The performance could not be any different to that of the video. We have a floor and wall background that is a bit like an old arcade game. Lots of squares sliding over each other. Sometime the video wall shows what looks like the leaves of a plant, fanned out. I’m not sure what deep meaning this has! Teo doesn’t have the lovely lady beside him. She has been replaced by four guys and everyone performs a simple routine. It’s all nice but loses the magic I was hoping for.

Stay tuned to esctoday.com for futher updates on the rehearsals at the Eurovision Song Contest 2014