A camp feste of over-the-top music and nationalist politics may be how some see the modern Eurovision Song Contest, but Georgia has an alternative. Although itself was politically conceived – Tiblisi withdrew from Eurovision when Moscow complained its lyrics mocked Vladimir Putin -Georgia claim theirs is a festival to be reckoned with.
One of the festival organisers said: “This is an international music festival, of free music and if there is an alternative to Eurovision it is in the content of the music. We have no contest, we have just a celebration of music. “
Meanwhile Russia is determined to put on a good Eurovision show and it should be as it is costing over €31million. In fact Moscow is using 30 percent of the world’s entire stock of of
LED screens on its lavish stage.
Last year’s winner Dima Bilan will open proceedings followed by as varied and wide ranging selection of performers as can be imagined. And this year, team UK has taken it all very seriously by engaging the talents of no less than Andrew Lloyd Webber for its entry – the humiliating “nil point” must be avoided at all costs.
