From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, May 7, 2025
Eurovision offers peek at Israel’s Herzl-inspired set
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleAmy Spiro is a reporter and writer with The Times of Israel
Eurovision organizers publish the first images of Israeli contestant Yuval Raphael from her rehearsal in Basel, Switzerland, yesterday, providing a sneak peek into her staging.
The images show Raphael, who will perform her ballad “New Day Will Rise” in the second semifinal next Thursday, dressed in all black and alone onstage.
She is performing alongside a two-level 5.5-meter (18-foot) chandelier, with stairs she climbs during the performance, accompanied by dramatic lighting.
On the second level of the chandelier is a balcony that Israel’s Kan public broadcaster said is meant to be a “symbolic nod” to the famous image of Zionist visionary Theodor Herzl looking out from a balcony in Basel during the Fifth Zionist Congress in 1901.
The Times of Israel Community.