Russia’s Manizha has taken to the stage inside Ahoy Rotterdam for her first rehearsal of Eurovision 2021. She starts off as a Russian doll. But does she have the key to Eurovision 2021 success hidden beneath her layers? Let’s see….
Russia’s Manizha “Russian Woman” — Eurovision 2021 first rehearsal
Oliver: When Russia gets it right, they get it right. Manizha appears in a huge oversized traditional dress moving on wheels, which then reveals into the red jumpsuit similar to the one we saw at the national final. The team seems to be putting more emphasis on the traditional/modern fusion, and are also leaning into the parody aspect of the song. It makes the message of “Russian Woman” much more clear, even for those who might not understand the language. At the end, we get a huge wall of singing selfies. It’s been done before at Eurovision, but this time it feels powerful. Manizha and her backing vocalists turn towards the Russian women, almost as if worshipping them. This is heading for a huge result.
Padraig: Manizha literally starts off as a Russian doll before she breaks out of the costume to become the Russian woman from the national final. The LED is filled with images of traditional Russian artwork, all of which feature women. Just as Manizha reaches the spiritual chanting, a giant image of an Orthodox-style religious icon appears on screen. Think the traditional images of Mary with the baby Jesus, but minus Jesus. And Mary looks very sad. Once the rap starts, this makes way for a series of slogans like “be strong” and “be creative”. The LED concludes with a wall of selfies which come together to spell “Russian Woman”. Manizha is fierce as ever. But the question remains whether this will translate beyond Russia and the wider region.
Reaction to Russia’s first rehearsal at Eurovision 2021
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Photos: EBU / ANDRES PUTTING
I loved this. The symbolism is really well defined. From the traditional Russian doll (representing the traditional role of Russian women) comes out the modern woman.
Apart from the confusing background change, this is looking really decent. I hope to see the background images flow better in the second rehearsal so that it fits well with the story that Manizha is trying to tell.
that’s a great performance, in RUSSIAN with lots of references to Russian artists and paintings + culture in general.
I’m excited about that too! One of her press photos reminded me so much of Vrubel’s Tsarevna-lebed’, so this is such a wonderful continuation of this theme!
oh god half of commentators love it and other half hate it lol
for me it was intresting to watch, musically it’s still too messy for me, but she will qualify and will have place in top 15 I think
LMFAO.. this is just horrible.. NQ for me..
LMAO, then watch generic pop from Sweden with copy and paste staging from Melfest, and Lithuania, which also didn’t bring any changes in their staging from the national final
Is this a thread about them or Russia??
But to answer you, agreed, they were also bad..
This is awesome this is 100% gonna qualify
From the moment I heard this ….. I felt a 1944 moment. Anyone who says this is not a contender is clearly wrong. I can really see this winning the whole thing.
Am I the only one who fears that Russia won’t qualify because the satellites (call them Azerbaijan or Moldova) won’t support her bc she doesn’t have Putin’s support?
she definitely has; otherwise she wouldn’t “win” the selection carried out by a state TV channel
I’m sure that Vladimir is loling….he is pushing some westerns to vote for Russia….
meanwhile, some excited westerns imagine that they vote…against
It will be a big surprise and real achievement, if Russia qualifies without its satellites. This would definitely break the system and people will understand, that this all because of her originality and charisma. Maybe, the song itself is not polished, very risky, but she can take it with her personality as a talented performer.
Having spent many Eurovisions in this region, I actually do not think this is such a big worry.
Okay, this has got me EXCITED
I was afraid she would keep that dress all along, that would have killed all the energy she has to offer.
A huge carpet for covering a car won’t help Russia from their iminent non qualification. The song is cheap, just like their song and staging. No One will vote for Russia, except their usual voters (Moldova and Azerbaijan). And now that Armenia and Belarus are out of the contest, their chances of qualification are Low
For your information, this “carpet for covering a car” took months to make and it was actually Manizha and her mother who collected threads from all around Russia and knitted the threads all together for that dress
You’re a child. This “carpet” has an interesting story. And the song is cheap? Wtf. Perhaps you don’t like it but it is certainly not cheap. For once, Russia does something different and the message is real. Sergey’s songs were cheap. I liked them but they were.
I don’t want Manizha to win because she is far from my favorites but she deserves a spot in final and in the top 15 (at least).
Sergey’s song were cheap ? You’re hooligan…big boy.
Yep they were. As I said it doesn’t mean they aren’t enjoyable. They are just basic eurovision pop song.
Basic eurovision pop songs ? Can I read something about in Papyrus Larousse ?
ps-in my poor english….basic and cheap are 2 different words.
Manizha will qualify Russiaphobe
Lol. For sure. Already told that .
keep walking boy. You’re a cult figure.
ps-Just dont like the song, not the country.
You need to get a life internetgangster
What a sharpy statement…lol
well i see you in every wiwi article making negative comments.
(1) vocals are okay – she is a good singer… (2) but OMG: there is NO message at all (yes, Russian is one of my native languages)… she just tries selling the fake feminism to naive Europeans… (3) the rendition and manner are not freaky but vulgar; (4) the song per se is hugely incoherent and messy… sorry
Are you talking about MALTA? lmao
tbh, Malta uses a similar approach but the song of Malta is somewhat better
Here’s the thing, Destiny only sings the song Je Me Casse, but I haven’t seen her saying any word or taking any action to support women’s rights. As for me, it’s too tricky to use woman empowerment topic as some kind of vote-getter.
at this point I agree with you… +1
Have you ever listen that women in Malta are facing any problems of rights ?
A la carte rights….
Agree with you too…but at least Malta has a song…not a troll entry.
Do you feel the need to try and offend another country when that country does not feature at all? So many childish haters around!
I’m telling THE TRUTH, while you are not. “Goodbye patriarchy, hello gender equality.” that’s what Manizha said to all of us. I haven’t heard a single word from Destiny to support women. She can only sing. You’re gonna argue with the truth?
That is not the point here is it? The point is that you brought in a contestant from a different country to back up your claims and to try and sustain your argument. You do not need to belittle other singers. I do not know whether the Russian singer has spoken about women’s right or not because I am not familiar with Russian politics. But that does not mean that she hasn’t stood up for women. So the same goes for you with regards to the Maltese singer. Are you familiar with what Destiny has said and done in her… Read more »
…and yes: Slovenia, Belgium or Estonia with the same entry would be certainly dropped at the stage of semifinal 🙂
Are you sure ? Please remember that Russia already failed to qualify (in 2018)
that female singer with special needs and weak vocals was provocatively selected for ESC2017 and then kept for ESC2018 after being rejected by Ukraine in 2017… however, the entry of 2018 was absolutely horrible, so the results were appropriate in spite of the customary support of the satellite counties…
A la carte Rights….Seems that Russian women with special needs…dont have rights…to smile provocatively.
indeed, it was horrible
selection? really? 🙂
I do really hope people could understand her message. The meaning, things she wants to say are huge and great! WE GET HER BACK!!!
Exactly, completely agree.
I was having doubts about this qualifying but it’s a sure qualifier now. Best staging so far
Awful song (?), interesting photograph, unpolished staging, a lot of energy, possible jury support for political reasons.
I don’t buy her supposed message.
Certainly qualifier (possible top 10 in gf).
Imagine if she wins after all these kirkorov entries, he will basically leave the country and choose the Moldovan entries
I want her to win so badly that it hurts. She is a class act.
I don’t get the good comments about this. It is horrible in every way. Too bad for Russia that I usually like their entries, but not this year sorry.
I thought I was the only one that doesn’t like this, it is horrible, I’m not getting all the love either.
I find it horrible too.
I think that’s pretty understandable as it’s one of the most polarising songs this year. It’s pretty outside-the-box.
Maybe it’s just a matter of taste. The point is people don’t need to project hate of Russia onto the singer Manizha. Honestly speaking, she is a brave, strong and creative woman who fights for LGBTQ+ community, women and refugee’s rights. She is a great and open-minded person who deserves our respect, not hate. Hatred comes from incomprehension.
I’m not talking about her personally. I’m talking about the song and it’s presentation. Do you think that the people who will be watching that night will know her story? They will judge what they see and hear and it’s not good.
I get your point. This is the very question they need to solve. Many audience can’t understand Russian language. However, those parts people don’t understand are very brilliant… Hopefully, there will be subtitles when they do live performance.
I think you’re correct, people here are very quick to throw around the word “hater” if someone doesn’t like a particular song or act. I really dislike this genre of music and while I’m all for people singing in their own language but I don’t like the sound of the Russian language but I don’t hate Russians or anyone else.
Russian split vote since 2016 : Good for Russia : Azerbaijan, Cyprus and Malta (the both) – Germany, Irelande, Israel, Italy, Lithuania and Ukraine (for televote) – Croatia and Macedonia (for Jury) Bad for Russia : Australia (but could be different because this country love non-english songs), Belgium and Slovenia (the both) – Germany, Irelande, Israel (could be very different this year because the israeli songrwitter and composer), Italy, Norway and Ukraine (for Jury) – All televote from all this country gave vote to Russia in the past. Australia : SF 2016 (J0/T0) – 2018 (J0/T0) and Final 2016 (J0/T5) –… Read more »
I love this already! I’m never usually this excited over a Russian entry, it’s weird!
Loved the idea, innovation on the stage!!
I had thought with Belarus absent they needed to find 20 points from somewhere but I think you could cast a blanket pre rehearsals on the next 8 entries after a clear top 5. Its early days but I think the Russian doll outfit might appeal to TV viewers, and for a change juries might buy this.
Horrible song, horrible vocal. Came out a bit straight forward from me and not very tactical, apologies, but it’s just so much kitsch on stage, no taste and elegance. Vocals don’t sound nice live and it’s just so messy. The message is powerful, but there are a lot of better singers like Samantha Tina who have the same message and way more polished tune.
she has a good vocal you may not like her type of voice but she has a good voice.
Maybe… to me she screams in some places and I don’t like the sounding, so maybe i just don’t vibe with this particular song for her vocals.
Finally, I’m not the only one who doesn’t like her vocals
it’s great, everything is so Russian, I like it very much, Russia has prepared something cool this year
Easy finalist. This will be one of the most commented entries of the year for sure. It looks great, it sounds great, they have attitude… I will be surprised if this stays in the semi.
“This is gonna be a gas!” (c)
It will be definitely a theatrical performance, which will attract your attention every second, from the very beginning to the end. She has already done with 30 seconds. What would be if she shows 3 minutes of her performance? Mind-blowing!
My only tiny criticism is that she need so break out of the dress with a bit more confidence. But I am sure it will get polished the next days.
This is my favourite song at this moment
Miss Charisma entered Eurovision
I LOVE HER SOOO MUCH! After the rehearsal, I’m more convinced that she is my winner this year.
This is giving very much top 3, especially since Russia have placed similarly and even won with much worse songs
Until now the best rehearsal, i love her and her song. She is the Dark horse of the year
She’s gorgeous! I think the public will love it, and the jury should appreciate the strong message. In any case, it’s better than any polished and soulless song from Russia
Omaga, there’s a woman in traditional Sakha/Yakut costume on this LED screen! I’ve never imagined that my culture would be represented in the huge international show like Eurovision.
This Russian doll prop alone deserves qualification! I thought Russia was borderline but I’m starting to change my mind. Let’s see what the other countries have in bag as well.
Stunning visuals. Dark horse for suuuuure!
Absolutely wonderful first rehearsal. Russia should book their ticket to the final if there’s any justice in this world.
Channel one have a really creative team. OK, Julia Samoylova was an epic fail, but Polina Gagarina, Dina Garipova, Alex Sparrow, Peter Nalitch, Anastasia Prikhodko, Serebro had all good stagings. Russia Channel on the other hand with Philip Kirkorov…
At first, meh… Later on, I start to like this one… Now, oh yes… me like….
Top 10 no doubt
The rehearsal video is finally on Eurovision’s Youtube channel and I’m loving everything I’ve seen so far. Also the backing vocals kept their formation around Manizha, which was my priority.
Where is Deban I miss him…
Bring him back and ditch William, he’s beyond irritating.
I haven’t seen the video yet, but looking at the LED wall, and the photos, I am sure that this will qualify.
Jesus. What is this dress ? Lol
I’m intrigued by it. But I like the bright colours and the traditional patterns.
Does anybody know when are the meets and greets?
FACTS
WOW, that was amazing!!!
It was obvious from the very start, it is a Top10 material.
Yes Russia!