That struts and frets his hour upon the stage.....

The stage for Eurovision 2009 is revealed!

Themed "Fantasy Bird", this year Eurovision stage promise to bring a new sight to Europe. The futuristic stage is designed by an American, John Case. Case has experiences in Eurovision stage design- he is also the proud designer of 1994, 1995, 1997's Eurovisions.

Case claimed the ideas of the stage came from the art of Russian Avant Garde period.

"Everything from this artistic time period - from the posters to the three dimensional constructions - has interesting perspective. The art presents an unexpected view or use of space. I've tried to come up with a theatrical design for the contest that incorporates Russian avant garde art into a contemporary setting, almost entirely made up of different types of LED screens,"

The stage is basically made of LED screens of different sizes and shape. From the flooring to the backdrop, everything, is digital. It is also revealed that the stage has multiple movable parts, to give different feelings to each song performed on stage on the big night. The stage will be fueled by state-of-the-art technology to fit the huge success of the competition.

Personally, based on the artistic impression of the stage released. It is quite futuristic, and a lil' bit messy. Especially those screens levitating above the stage, i think it is too much. Probably, the stage will look really good on TV, but slightly different live. The stage seems so futuristic and complex, that I doubt they can really build it, especially when everyone is still in pain of the economic crisis and recession.

But then again, this is just the first released artistic impression of the stage. Over the months, changes will be made for various reason. Like what happened last year, the original stage design look different the real stage design.

The original 2008 stage design,

The actual stage of 2008

Hopefully, Russian can beat that stage!

That is all for today.

Thank you for reading!

Oscar

For the first time ever, i got to watch Oscar live telecast from the TV set. Not replay because I don't have to go to school, or college or work. LOL

Anyway, this year's Oscar has proved to be one of the best in recent years. They made a smart choice for appointing Hugh Jackman to be the host of this year's Oscar, he certainly add some life into the 3 and a half hour long award show. Unlike the previous year, where I was bored out before I even enter the 2nd hour, i stayed till the end.

The stage in Kodak Theater this year is a little bit smaller, but it was simple and elegent. The semicircular strings of crystals hung on the outer frame of the stage add to the glamour of the Oscar.

Hugh Jackman opened the show with a few jokes and a musical to tribute the best of Hollywood movies in 2008. Together with him performing on the stage was Anne Harthaway. If you have the time, this is the video.



Tina Fey and Steve Martin were the presenter for the Best Screenplay for Original Screenplay and Adapted Screenplay. They presented a skit, which I find absolutely funny. Unfortunately, i can't find the whole video of them on Youtube. The best I found on the internet is this.





Hugh Jackman had another performances lining up on that night too. This time, performing with him on stage were Beyonce, Amanda Seyfield , Dominic Cooper ( Mamma Mia), Zac Effron and Vanessa Hudgens. Together, they pay a tribute to the musical. The whole performance lasted 5 minutes, in which Hugh Jackman ended with the line,

"THE MUSICAL IS BACK!"

I think it was one of the best performance on the night. Definitely worth the 5 minutes time of watching.



Other highlights of the night including Kate Winslet for her first Oscar after so many nominations and the late Heath Ledger who won Best Supporting Actor. This year, there is a new format to present the Best Actor/Actress and Best Supporting Actor/Actress. Five winners from the past took the stage and honour each nominees before the result is announced. It was quite classy and nice. They sure really do something like this next year.

Anyway, i don't really enjoy writing a recap on Oscar. The draft dragged me through two days and i still don't fill like writing it. So, i will just simply finish it up and publish it. They should really have Tina Fey and Steve Martin for hosts next year though.

Bye.

Greece National Final

Last night, Greece has decided to send "This Is Our Night" to Moscow for this year Eurovision.

I hate to say this, but,

"WILL! I told you so! HAH!"

See, I am right again, in my earlier post, i mentioned that this song should be chosen to represent Moscow and I was right! And Will said that the first song, "Out Of Control" should win, he was sooooo wrong!!!

Ok, i apologize for being childish the last 30 seconds.

Now back to the National Final yesterday night. Fyi, I didn't stay up to watch the live webcast, I was sleeping. But I follow the show on Youtube this morning.

There were a few others contestant who also performed on stage in the final as guest stars. Such as, Chiara (Malta), Hadise(Turkey), Jade(UK), Andrea Demirovic (Montenegro) and also Greek singer, Kalomira.

First thing first, let's have a look of the winning performance last night.

I can't comment much on the singing because he is lip-syncing. But, his dance moves...OK, let me summarize his dance routines,

1. 0.13min - Teacher-writing-on-whiteboard routine
2. 0.43min- Shoulder-and-chest-spasm routine
   
3. 1.20min - Cleaning-the-toilet-bowl routine
4. 1.27min - Let's-play-soldier-crawling-on-floor routine

Except from some weird parts of the dance routine at the beginning, (especially the backup dancers), it was otherwise alright. I tell you, the Greek entries for Eurovision always have something different in their choreography...always.

This is Kalomira's performance. It is a medley of Lady Gaga's Just Dance, Pussycat Dolls' When I Grow Up and her "Secret Combination"

I don't know why, but it all seems a lil' bit weird to me, perhaps it is because I am used to listening to the original version of those songs.

Next, we have everyone's favourite Hadise's "Dum Tek Tek". Btw, "Dum Tek Tek" is the rhythm of the heart in the context of song.

Everyone seems to like this song alot. A hot favourite at this years Eurovision. It is said that the song is full of Turkish rhythm, but to me, there are some parts that really sounds like an Indian song. Anyway, it is confirmed that Hadise is still working on the song, some parts of the song will be altered and stuff-like-that. She also confirmed that a music video for the song is in progress.

Other performances like Chiara and Jade are just as usual, not really interesting, so, i decided no to post about it. Anyway, I still think Chiara is great, really hope she finally got to win back the trophies that she deserved a few years back.

Finally, a small consolation for you, Will.

Personally, I think the dance moves on this song is better than the "This Is Our Night". But the song is just not Eurovision's material. After all, 74.3% voters voted "This Is Our Night"....

Now that Greece has settled with their song, Russia should now has the spotlights. 2008 Winner, Russia has been keeping unusually quite all this while. So far, no words on who will be participating in the National Final from the organizer. As always, Russia (and Ukraine) are the chart toppers of Eurovision.

That is all for today. Bye!

Where You Lead

Last week, we witnessed the finale of "Gem Of Life". The 82 episodes long modern drama featuring top Hong Kong celebrities is the most expensive production ever from TVB. However, the drama did not excel in ratings as "War and Beauty". It is noted that "Gem of Life" is indeed a spin-off from "War and Beauty". The finale, which was aired on last Friday received the highest rating of only 35points. Compared to other successful production of TVB, "Moonlight Resonance" which scored 50 points, "Gem Of Life" is a disappointment to the high hopes of the entire crew.

One the other hand, 2009 is a brand new year, it is rumored that there will NOT be a third installment of "Moonlight Resonance" anymore. The first and second season of the series have swept away all the awards in TVB Award Gala Nights. The awards includes both years' "Best Drama", "Best Actor", and "Best Actress". The reason given by the TVB is that they have no confident in making a third installment which can exceed the success of "Moonlight Resonance".

Without the third installment, other dramas will finally have a chance to shine. For example, one of the most anticipated drama of 2009 is none other than "Beyond The Realm Of Conscience" 《宮心計》. Before anything else, let's have a look at the trailer released by TVB.

The drama set in the palace of the ancient Tong Dynasty. I believed most of you who watched the trailer will have a good idea of what to expect in the show, so, i won't do any summary at all.
Originally 25 episodes, the producer decided to extend it to 30 episodes and film it in high definition, the filming starts earlier this month. The show is considered the Chinese version of "Jewel In The Palace" add up with "War and Beauty".

And tonight is Greece's National Final for Eurovision, if interested you can catch the show live on internet tonight from eurovision.tv The show will start at 21.00 CET, which is 4am. The interesting part is you can also vote for the songs from here as a part of "International Jury".

That is all for today, bye!

Run The Show

Listed 1st on MTV Asia's Chart Attack this week, we have Kat Deluna and her song, "In The End"

Compared to her other songs, i think "In The End" is a little bit over rated.

Don't know who she is?

Perhaps the following videos will freshen up your memory

1) Run The Show - Kat DeLuna feat. Busta Ryhmes

2) Whine Up - Kat DeLuna feat. Elaphant Man
(I wanted to embed a video here, but all they are disabled on request by the record company, thus, click here to watch the video)

Is it just me? Or she did better when she is singing with another person? Anyway, her songs are among my many favourites. I especially like her music video of Run The Show. Her Spanish version of "Whine Up" is great too. And one more thing, she looks almost like a Malay in her "In The End" video. As usual, her dance moves are great in almost all her music video.

I have another video of her featured in another singer's album, Swedish Idol show's winner, Darin Zanyar. In this song, she try out a more different type of song, which i find quite interesting, except that, she has little parts in the song, more like a back up singer. But, I seem to enjoy this song more that "In The End". I don't really like "In The End", and the music video is kinda sucky too.

(Again click here to watch the video. Sorry for the inconveniences.)



Ok, enough with Kat DeLuna, now, gossips and news!

1. You like Duffy's Mercy and her retro singing style? Too bad, she is ditching this style in her second studio album, she wanted to do something similiar to "Christina Aguilera" and "Mariah Carey"......To be honest, I can't imagine her singing Aguilera's "Genie In A Bottle".
2. Coldplay will be having a concert in Singapore on the 23rd of March 2009. And the ticket starts selling on the 16th of February....wait, that's today? Ticket prices are S$248, S$188, S$158, S$88.
3. Seriously? I can't believe Nick Mitchell is in top 36 spots of American Idol. Nick Mitchell? aka NORMAN GENTLE????.....Omg.....AND TATIANA ALSO???!!!! *i fainted*
   
4. Britney is back, and that is not the news anymore. The news is, in her coming concert tour for "Circus", a video of Perez Hilton will be the opening act. Perez Hilton? On Britney Spears' concert? Is this another Britney's famous meltdown....Again? Oh wait, I forgot, Perez Hiton does fit the theme of "Circus" afterall....a clown he is.
5. Not really a news, but i still don't really get it, why StarWorld want to censored certain words in a song performed in Grammys? Last week, Kate Perry performed her "I Kissed A Girl" on stage, however, in the live telecast i watched here in Malaysia, the word "girl" is censored throughout the whole song. So she goes like, "I kissed a ____, and i like it, taste of her...." How lame is that!
   

That is all for today, enjoy your day!

Light.

To be honest, i am really really tired right now, but i think it is decent to post something on the birthday of the this blog.

Just 3 random Youtube video i got from my friend, enjoy yourself!











Did I said 3, I mean 5. I lied.

Sorry for having such a lousy post, will post more soon.

Thank you for reading.

Greece Decides!

A few days ago, representative of Greece for Eurovision 2009, Sakis Rouvas (above) has presented the three songs for the contest. The three songs are,

1. Out of Control (pop with R&B elements)
   
2. Right on Time (mid tempo)
   
3. This is Our Night (up beat, dance song)
   

Sakis will perform the song on stage in the Greece National Final on the 18th of February . It will be a full performance choreographed by Fokas Evangelinos, however, he will not be singing live, but using a playback. Joining him as guest stars including representative of Malta, Chiara with her song "What If We" and last year's Greece representative, Kalomira.

Now, let's have a closer look at the three songs.

1) Out of Control


2)Right On Time


3)This is Our Night


I personally thinks the first and third songs stand a better chance, and from the two, the third, "This is Our Night" will probably be the final selection of the nation.

There are several reasons drove me to this view. Firstly, the theme of the song, "This Is Our Night", clearly, it suggest/appeal to the public that this is the night where Sakis will bring back the "Olympics of Song" back to Athens.

Secondly, like many other successful Eurovision songs, such as Sakis very own "Shake It", Kalomira's "Secret Combination" and Helena Paparizou's "My Number One". Ukraine's Ani Lorak's "Shady Lady". All of them share a good similarity, they are all upbeat songs that are able to make the listeners move to the beat of the songs. In other word, they are able to convey the energy of the song to the audience. It is also noted that this year, Turkey's, Hadise's "Dum Tek Tek" also adapted similiar styles : Upbeat, Strong, Dancing and rich with Turkish music.

Thirdly, the song is capable of a A-m-a-z-i-n-g performance. The nature of the song allowed Sakis to perform greatly on stage. Especially on the short break between, 2.15minutes to 2.28minutes, we can expect him to do something to enrich the whole performance. For example, like last year's Unkraine, Ani Lorak who also have a similiar break in the song where she can perform something extraordinary. However, the studio version of the song, "This is Our Night" as we heard above is not as appealing as it can be. I believe that if he CAN deliver the song stronger.

The second song, "Right on Time" is good, but too smooth. It is like a good song that people enjoyed but easily overshadowed by other stronger song. The first song, "Out of Control" stands a great chance too, but I preferred the third.

Another noted fact about Greece's entry this year is the cheoreographer, Fokas Evangelinos. Evangelinos is well known in Eurovision for the amazing live performances he cheoreographed, that almost always are also a Eurovision success. With Evangelinos as his cheoreographer, we are expecting to see Sakis shine on the stage.

Will Sakis repeats the success of Dima Bilan, Helena Paparizou - To win the contest on their second entry to the competition. Or will he be another Chiara? So close, but never won the competition? It is hard to tell, especially after this year's competition voting system has changed.

Interested to watch the live telecast of the Greece National Final? You can watch it from here at 9.10 CET on the night of 18th February.

Asiavision

I stumbled on a BBC online news which dated September last year. Apparantly, Asia is about to launch our very own version of Eurovision - Asiavision! Rumoured to be the host of the first season, Singapore is also the home of the organising company. Afterall, this is not the first time Singapore bid for large scaled international competition, just last year, we witnessed the success of the country's debut in Formula One, Singapore is also preparing for the first ever Youth Olympics next year too.

Actually, such international song competition have also been organized in the past. Asian Idol is one good example of ...failure. To be honest, I don't put up high hope on the Asiavision. In Europe, the contest is a matter of national pride. It is exciting to see different countries with different cultures background compete against each other on a stage. It is dubbed as the "Olympics of Music". However, in Asia? I afraid, it will not be as exciting as in Europe.

Most countries will probably approuch popular culture songs to favour the voters. Most of them would probably performing English, pop/rock/ballad genre. In that case, Asiavision has lost it's true meaning already....it is simply not Asian culture anymore. It will be rather boring and lifeless. Unless the organizing community set a rule to make sure each country sings in their respectively national language or at least have a song related to the cultures, or else, it might very well be the first or the last Asiavision.

Like all televoting events, biased voting has always been a pain. Even Eurovision can't escape from the fate of biased voting. Especially in Asia, biased voting is obviously an enormous problem. Look what happened in Asian Idol, in the end, someone unfit won the contest due to biased voting. Therefore, Asiavision must develop a good voting system to prevent such mess.

So far, only 16 countries are expected to debut in the competition, including, Malaysia. And please don't send Jaclyn Victor again. Another interesting participant is Hong Kong.

Of course, by comparing to Eurovision 54 years history, it does take some time for Asiavision to reach the same popularity.......and exceed it. If Asiavision is properly planned, it will for sure be better than Eurovision. Why? Hey! It is Asia! We have half the population of the world over here, and 4000 thousand years of cultures will be showcased in one fantastic night! How can that be not cool? Chinese, Japanese, Indian, Malay, and so much more countries with rich cultures competing on a stage is not things we see everyday. It will be a stage diverse of colors and cultures!

I can't help but wonder, whether Turkey and Australia are eligible to join the contest. First, Turkey is half Europe, half Asia (Turkey also took part in Eurovision). Second, Australia was eligible for Asian Games (or something like that...) So far, these two countries have not expressed their wish to participate. Anyway, since it is rumored to be held in Singapore, as a die-hard fan of the competition, you can expect me to be watching the show live! I am really exciting for the Asiavision.

If you are really free and want to find out more about Eurovision, you can watch the video following. It is basically an introduction to the contest based of Eurovision 2006 Greece.

This is a text post. The original post can be found on www.kelberos.blogspot.com