HARESHET Presents, WorldVision Song Contest 82
Live from Ertzei Kishim
OOC Thread | Host Bid | Official Playlist
Designed by artist, and contest creative director Dan Ben-Tzvi, the stage pushes the boundaries of accepted stage design, particularly in the WorldVision Song Contest. The sprawling design plays with elevation, texture and depth, giving broadcasters a challenging, yet visually thrilling task to present their stage show. Whereas previously there has been a reliance on a frontal facing performance with a backing LED, this stage will change that formula. Acts will now have to utilise a 360 space, without a backing LED screen, but rather a floor, powered by the most advanced projection technology. This technology allows for any beamed image not to lose clarity of texture as it travels over the different elevations and edges of the stage. Furthermore, the stage floor also has a back-up option of producing LED effects, to the same quality as the projection. This not only works as a back up in the event of any of the projections not fulfilling their desired effect, but allows for dynamic combinations between the two, adding greater depth to the performance. While the stage poses creative challenge, it also presents greater opportunity. The necessity of creating a truly 360 degree act allows for an expanded performance team (budget permitting). The stage can accommodate more people than any previous stage, due to its vast size. This will make the show truly magnificent as we expect countries to increase their production value as a result. The stage also has virtual reality and holographic capacities too, allowing for on-screen tricks of the eye for audiences at home.
The camera team numbers 35, which includes remote operators of 8 different overhead cameras, on stage shots, panning in and out, and shots that cut the line between on stage realism and overhead maximalism. In short: all shots are possible with the expanded team at your disposal. Spark/fire machines, spotlights and steam blasters are spaced regimented around the outer rim of the stage. The distance between this outer rim and the stage proper will be sunken down slightly and contain the standing audience, as well as the areas near the two ramps to enter and exit the stage. This will allow approximately 1000 fans to get in on the action and party the night away. Artists are invited to use the raised parts of the stage to interact with fans, project their image and elevate themselves higher for maximum effect. With the Parade of Nations which will occur as part of the opening act, the performers will descend from one ramp each, meaning two acts enter at the same time. They will then travel towards the other side of the stage, before exiting to the left side of the ascending ramp. Each of these exits will lead directly to the greenroom. We hope you are excited as we are to use this fabulous stage!
Ertzei Kishim, then by the name of Kishrael, hosted its first and only WorldVision exactly 56 editions ago, in the then capital Shatilaurchev. Ertzei Kishim is a different country now, in fact radically different. Widely regarded as a successful hosting, the edition following Ertzei Kishim earned their first ever victory in the contest, and began a long tradition of supporting, promoting and disseminating the values and beliefs of the contest with every participation. The decision for Tiferet to host the 82nd edition of the contest was in fact, unanimous. Now because of a vote, but rather because there were no competing bids against it. While this affected the contest schedule, Tiferet, and Ertzei Kishim, were ready. Ertzei Kishim has one of the longest and most active histories of any nation in the WorldVision Song Contest, having racked up 11 podium places, including 5 victories, Ertzei Kishim is no stranger to WorldVision, yet many fans have not had the pleasure to visit our beautiful country. Tonight is that night. After a week of exciting events for fans and local alike during the WorldVision week, the night was here. The spotlight was centred squarely on Ertzei Kishim after many years once again, and tonight it was gonna be one hell of a show. Just one minute to go until 20:00, the backstage team running around like crazy... "Shalosh, Shtayyim, Ehad... YALLAH"
The last time Ertzei Kishim hosted a WorldVision, the country had no wins. Can you believe it! Despite being one of the most decorated WorldVision nations, we have not had a chance to celebrate our successes in our own country. Dan Ben Tzvi wanted the contest to be a celebration of not only the WorldVision, but also a celebration of Ertzei Kishim - in fact it was a requirement for it to receive the public funding which it did from governmental cultural budgets. Thus, the perhaps slightly self-indulgent Kishraeli megamix would open the show. Gathered together were the five Kishraeli WorldVision winners, varying wildly in age to the veterans of Tabitha Shamaimah and Channah Avitan, to the most recent winner Lika Dia. Some of these tunes are fan-favourites, especially in Ertzei Kishim, and upon learning of the idea, many Kishraeli superfans were ecstatic to see their favourites on stage once again.
Zirah Leumit was alight with 7,800 fans waving white handheld glow sticks, whooping, cheering and clapping. A camera panned around the arena, showing the filled space. Small white lights flowed around the perimeter of the stage, outlining it but not revealing who, or what was in the centre. The countdown began on the start of the stage in Hebrew, the crowd shouting along with it. Upon hitting number one, a thunder sound struck the stage. A white light surrounded a single figure on the stage. A voiceover began the story...
A camera shot straight in front of a hooded woman, pulling her hood off, it revealed Tabitha Shamaimah. She wore the same makeup as she did the very first time she was on stage, dark, vampiric makeup. Her striking face had aged, but she still was serving it. She smiled and winked at the camera, put the microphone to her lips and began her iconic WorldVision song.
How dare you, how dare you betray me like this
After all we’ve been through
Don’t you try, don’t you try to turn this on me
Because we were in this together as one
And my silent despair, goes on undetected
A ceaseless nightmare
She steps forward, releasing the cloak to reveal a dark, red and black shining dress, composed of a shattered glass design. The floor began to show a dark, burning graphic. A firey, smokey on-screen effects began to envelop her on stage, with which she played up to the camera. Looking up to the roof and lifting her hand, she then shot a fierce look back down towards a frontal camera as she sang the chorus.
But I think it’s time that, I learn to realise
That it was all lies
All I did, for nothing, for nothing
And I’ll learn to hate you, one day I can try
To forget all of the times, back when it was right!
At the end of Tabitha's part, the voiceover began. At its end, coming from the side and singing straight into the bridge stepped Channah Avitan, the winner of WorldVision 28. Her hair is silver with glitter applied sporadically and straightened. She wears a long glittery kimono sleeved bodysuit. Marching out the side of the stage, she smiles and waves to the crowd who go wild at her appearance. Tabitha has moved to one of the "peaks" near the side of the stage, meaning as Channah moves to the centre, she is alone.
And do you think of me?
When the silence runs wild and free…
And do you sit in frozen stillness sometimes?
And wonder where the music we shared went, it went, it went…
As the house beat builds up, she moves her head from side to side in time with the music, her shiny, straightened hair flowing smoothly in time. She then lowers her head, as the music lowers, before getting higher again and singing the chorus. Her original performance had dancers, but rather, holographic projections of humans, made out of a misty material and without defined features begin dancing around her as she does the same choreography as all those years ago in Malu. The spotlights from above and from the rim of the stage flash in time with the music, creating a sleek and clean look.
Where did you go?
Because this painful silence
This beautiful torture
And the cold it burns me, but I still sing to you
Painful, this painful silence
My song dies with you, my melody stops
Should I destroy the words, that you said to me?
And the cold it burns me, but I still sing to you
Painful, this painful silence
Painful, this painful silence
Painful, painful, this painful silence
The heavy beats of "Or Adom" blared out throughout the stadium. This was certainly the crowd's favourite of the entries. Immediately the girls from Cinderella Ra'ah walked out from the western ramp. They bundled down the ramp in chaotic rhythm. Their mismatched, yet still stylish outfits fit the band and the vibe perfectly.
Eleh orot adumot - אלה אורות אדומות [These red lights]
Mavzikim mazhirim - מבזיקים מזהירים [Are flashing bright]
Simanim azharim b’shepa - סימנים אזהרים בשפע [Warning signs aplenty]
Adayin atah rotzeh lavo - עדין אתה רוצה לבוא [Still you want to come]
The girls fan out on the stage. Underneath them, each girl is flanked by a coloured strip, pink, blue, yellow and green. They begin to then stop at intervals so that they are appropriately tiered for the camera angle to spot them all, and so that each of them are standing squarely in the middle of a stripe. Emma and Gal take hold of the bridge while Jaffe takes sole lead in the chorus. The girls each adopt a wide powerful gate, putting the microphone to the mouth as they seem stiff.
When the dark is rising, rubies keep shining
If the nightfall breaks you, hold on, we’ll pull through
Stronger
Tougher as you move from the power music gives you
Faster
No stopping us now, seven seconds ‘til we crash through!
As the mega chorus starts, the lines the girls are standing on began to wave around and break apart. Eventually bursting into different colours as the girls let loose on stage while singing the chorus. They jump around together, smiling and bouncing, thrilled to be back on the WorldVision stage, this time in their own country.
Yoter v’yoter, shiru et zeh chazak yoter - יותר ויותר, שירו את זה חזק יותר [More and more, sing it louder]
Yoter v’yoter, nitlu et zeh gavoa yoter - יותר ויותר, נטלו את זה גבוה יותר [More and more, take it higher]
Coming out from the other side of the stage, Ada Gatling, much beloved within Ertzei Kishim, but more hidden on the international scene. After she finished second to fellow winner Tabitha Shamaimah in Kdam-WorldVision she took a back seat. Yet tonight she was back in force. She wore a big ball gown with a structured bottom which flowed out and was decorated similar to Tabitha's dress, with dark shards. It was lightweight however as it did not have any fabrice underneath the structure. Once the music gets louder she looks directly down the camera, tapping her foot as she goes. When the chorus kicks in she sings with all her power, throwing her head back and to the side as her arms fly out. A wind machine is used to emphasize the effect.
They will tell you, never give up
But my hearts already gone
And I refuse to wake up
To this life that I am living!
To this life that I am living!
I will not wake up...
As the music calms, Ada drops to the floor, kneeling down she looks down before looking up slowly and gesticulating with her hand. With the lights still soft she drops even lower to the floor until she is almost lying down, while she continues to sing the song.
Part of me knows what you are
The elixir for my heart
And part of me knows that
You're poison
I tried to pursue a dream
Relentless fantasy
And now I will pay the price
As the electric beat kicks in, the stage goes dark again and the lights in the circle pulse rapidly in time with the music. Ada stands up and moves in time, throwing her body forward and pulling it back with the dubstep-esque beats. When the familiar music of the chorus comes back on the stage bursts into light and with the wind machine on, Ada throws herself back for maximum power.
Az tagid li od sheker - אז תגיד לי עוד שקר
(So tell me another lie)
L'ha'arikh t'a'sevel ha'zeh - להאריך את הסבל הזה
(To prolong this suffering)
Lo etorer shuv - לא אתעורר שוב
(And I won't wake up again)
Az tagid li od sheker! - !אז תגיד לי עוד שקר
(So tell me another lie)
I refuse to wake up...
The crowd began going crazy for their most recent winner, Lika Dia. Now a huge star, she had commanded the public's attention until today. The crowd got louder and louder as the voiceover rang out through the stadium. Then, when the first notes of red began they erupted in a huge roar. The song was still huge popular among WorldVision fans, and upon the announcement that Ertzei Kishim would host the contest after 56 editions, a number of WorldVision songs reentered the Kishraeli charts, with "Red" charting the highest at #2. Lika was on a large platform being lifted down from roof of the stage. She wore her leathery outfit from her original WorldVision performance, no pretence here - she came her as a fully-fledged artist.
You had me chasing these crazy dreams
When it was way past my bedtime
We never said where we’d draw the line
But that didn’t matter when I was the only one on your mind
As the bridge comes, she widens her gate and pulls a pin out of her hair, letting her hair flow down and acting all sexy like that. At the same time as the bridge starts, the stage becomes a golden-beige colour. As the platform hits the stage, Lika steps off from it, and is then joined by the other winners, four on one side and three on the other. They all begin posing in a vogue-y kind of way to the camera as it shoots a shot at each one of them with a quick fade out effect on the screen.
Smashing bottles into diamonds
Glass shards cut so deep
The waters ain’t so clear no more
Their taste is not so sweet
As the chorus starts, Lika and the other winners march towards the camera in unison, their legs moving at the exact same time as one another (well the legs that were visible). When they reach their destination, they move the top half of their body to the side, their hands clutching around their bodies and up to their neck. They then whip their hair back while moving their heads behind, and then back to the front again. As she sings the "red" part, the stage then goes black, before the beat comes back and the now darker stage has glistening LEDs swirling around the stage floor. They all do a synchronised routine which starts just as sexual posturing, before descending into something more complicated. By the next time she says red, the stage returns to normal and Lika is on her knees singing to the camera, the other girls pose behind her.
Blue is the way I look towards you
Black is the way that you turn away
I got no regrets for stumbling this far
Coz’ you took everything that we had and you painted it red
Ah, Ah, Ahhaaahhhh x3
Coz’ you took everything that we had and you painted it red
Upon the completion of the performance the crowd goes wild. Every Kishraeli had a favourite and to see them all together for the first time was special for a number of WorldVision fans. All the girls were smiling as the camera showed a shot of each of them. It was a nice celebration of the winners, yet, tonight there would be a new winner and it was time to move on to the next portion of the show, where each of this year's participants would be introduced - the Parade of Nations, with a song accompaniment by popular Arab singer, Safa El-Ajami.
With the passing of the opening act, preparations were quickly made to move the WorldVision winners off from the stage and set up for the parade of nations. The parade's path worked as such, the performers will descend from one ramp each, meaning two acts enter at the same time. They will then travel towards the other side of the stage, before exiting to the left side of the ascending ramp. Each of these exits will lead directly to the greenroom. The path each delegation will follow will be coloured by the nations national colours with a flowing mix of the said colours. The announcer will also announce the name of the nation as Safa El-Ajami sings her song, titled "Yadour Ad-dinya" (The world turns).
الدنيا يدور، يا كل الليالي (Ad-dinya yadour, ya kol al-layaali)
بس مع انه هيك انت هون (Bas ma'a ino heyk inta hon)
الدنيا بدور، يا كل الايام (Ad-dinya yadour, ya kol al-ayaam)
بس بعد كل شي انت هون (Bas ba'd kol shi, inta hon)
Safa was standing on the eastern ramp of the stage, wearing a long flowy black outfit. She stood in place, gesticulating during her performance to emphasise the words she was singing. The truth was, the arrangement wasn't particularly deep or challenging, but it was in Arabic so nobody really knew what she was singing which made up for the simplicity of the song (which was put together at the last for the contest). The acts began marching out to the song.
ماشيا الدنيا، وانت وياها (Mashyaa Ad-dinya, w'inta weyaahaa)
تانية بتانية ساكنها (Taniyah betaniyah saakinhaa)
تشتي الدنيا، وكلنا وياها (Chity ad-dinya, w'kolna weyaahaa)
تانية بتانية متحملها (Taniyah betaniyah mit7amilha)
All the competing acts follow the given path which is illuminated by their national colours shooting through the floor in the specific route they walk. Two delegations at a time cross over one another in the centre before exiting the opposite way they entered. The crowd cheers for their favourites, their own nation and for everyone involved as the speaker announces the country names as they enter. From where Safa stands, grey and white shoots from where she sings, crossing under the path determined by the opening ceremony routes.
ماشيا الدنيا، وانت وياها (Mashyaa Ad-dinya, w'inta weyaahaa)
تانية بتانية ساكنها (Taniyah betaniyah saakinhaa)
تشتي الدنيا، وكلنا وياها (Chity ad-dinya, w'kolna weyaahaa)
تانية بتانية متحملها (Taniyah betaniyah mit7amilha)
(The lyrics are repeated again for the second half of the song as the competitors continue to file out for the parade of nations). With all acts through, the voice over announces: "Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the 82nd WorldVision Song Contest!" The crowd screams, as Safa moves off the stage, from the opposite ramp, presenter Stefania Oudeh walks down from the stage. She wears a beautiful corseted dress with a flared bottom. It was widely reported among domestic Kishraeli news, as well as in WorldVision media briefings that the husband and wife duo of Maya Hafouzi and Ahmed Shakekani were stepping down from hosting the contest just days before the event because of both testing positive for COVID-19. Due to the time constraints, HARESHET was unable to find a replacement host in the short space of time, and so, Stefania Oudeh was taking the reins as the sole host for the evening.
Stefania: Good evening world! How are we doing tonight? As you know, we are here to celebrate the best of the world's music. Whether you're from Amuaplye or Zentata, Ertzei Kishim or Todlichebujoku, everyone tonight will join together to hear the best sounds and slickest production in the music industry. As you might see, I am here alone tonight. My co-presenters have been self-isolating after being diagnosed with COVID-19 just a few days ago. We at HARESHET want to take this message to remind everybody to stay safe and look after themselves. Our health comes first. Now, without further ado, I am excited to announce to all of you gathered here, and our viewers at home... LET THE WORLDVISION SONG CONTEST BEGIN!