Juries to cast votes after Semi-Final One dress rehearsals in Vienna's Wiener Stadthalle

Eurovision is at the part of the week where rehearsals stop being just rehearsals. On Monday, May 11, Vienna’s Wiener Stadthalle hosts the Evening Preview for Semi-Final One — the full dress run that international juries actually vote on. That matters because those scores now count again in the semi-finals, which means tonight can reshape who reaches Saturday’s Grand Final. ### What is happening tonight? Tonight’s show is the Evening Preview for the first semi-final. It starts at 9 p.m. local time in Vienna, one night before the live TV semi-final on Tuesday, May 12 at 9 p.m. local time. This is the performance juries watch and score, while Tuesday afternoon brings one more preview and Tuesday night brings the televised qualifier. ### Why do juries matter so much here? (stadthalle.com) Because 2026 changes the rules back. In recent years, semi-finals were decided by public vote only, but Vienna’s contest restores the roughly 50/50 split already used in the Grand Final. So tonight is not some side event for superfans — it is half the qualifying equation. ### Who is actually competing? (stadthalle.com) Semi-Final One has 15 competing countries. The running order starts with Moldova’s Satoshi performing “Viva, Moldova!” and ends with Serbia’s LAVINA performing “Kraj Mene.” In between are Sweden’s FELICIA, Croatia’s LELEK, Greece’s Akylas, Portugal’s Bandidos do Cante, Georgia’s Bzikebi, Finland’s Linda Lampenius x Pete Parkkonen, Montenegro’s Tamara Živković, Estonia’s Vanilla Ninja, Israel’s Noam Bettan, Belgium’s ESSYLA, Lithuania’s Lion Ceccah, San Marino’s SENHIT, and Poland’s ALICJA. (eurovisionworld.com) ### How many spots are on the line? Ten of those 15 songs will qualify for the Grand Final. Germany and Italy also appear in this semi-final broadcast and vote in it, but they are already pre-qualified and are not competing for those 10 places. Basically, for the actual semi-finalists, one-third of the field is getting cut. ### Why does the dress rehearsal carry real weight? (eurovision.com) Eurovision staging is so technical that the “jury show” is meant to mirror the live broadcast as closely as possible — camera shots, lighting, timing, everything. The point is to judge the act viewers will see, not a stripped-down practice run. That makes tonight the first moment when songs stop being theory and become scoreboard material. (eurovisionworld.com) ### What should fans watch for? Running order always matters a little, because openers need to grab attention fast and closers get the last word. But the bigger swing factor is whether a song feels polished on camera. Eurovision is basically a three-minute television exam — if the staging lands cleanly in the jury show, that can steady an entry before the public vote even starts. The catch is that one awkward vocal or missed camera cue now has more consequence than it did under the televote-only setup. (stadthalle.com) ### Why Vienna, and why now? Austria is hosting the 70th Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna’s Wiener Stadthalle, the same arena that already staged the contest in 2015. This year’s live shows run May 12, May 14, and May 16, so tonight is the first genuinely consequential performance night of Eurovision week. ### Bottom line? Tonight is where Semi-Final One stops being hype and starts becoming math. (eurovision.com) The votes cast in Vienna on May 11 will help decide which 10 acts survive to the Grand Final — and with juries back in the semis, that is a much bigger deal than it was last year. (stadthalle.com) (eurovisionworld.com)