Portugal’s Luísa Sobral: “I think there’s no reason to change anything”

Last week he made headlines by announcing that he couldn’t attend his first rehearsals at Eurovision 2017 due to an ongoing health condition.

And today Portugal’s Salvador Sobral could rest assured that his staging is in good hands, as his older sister Luísa Sobral performed at the first rehearsal in his place.

Luísa — who also composed “Amar Pelos Dois” — earned rave reviews from wiwibloggs for the purity of the staging, its tight camera angles and the pristine forest in the backdrop.

Speaking to our Portuguese correspondent Bernardo afterwards, she confessed to feeling good. “I think there’s no reason to change anything,” she said.

Luísa Sobral (Salvador’s sister) | Interview in Kyiv

Luísa is not only the composer, but also, the braind behind Portugal’s staging.

Salvador’s sister explains that the staging is a point of convergence between what she likes and “what makes sense in Eurovision”.

She told us that she wanted it clean and simple, but not “naked” as her ideal performance would have been. That could have been scandalous, y’all!

Portugal’s Luísa Sobral first rehearsal review

“The most important thing is that the audience could look at his eyes through the camera, and that they could feel what he is feeling,” she says. Luisa (and, by virtue, Salvador) stands on the island stage alone, much like Anouk at Eurovision 2013. There, all she had to do was sing direct to the camera.

Behind her producers lit the LED with an enchanted forest. It matched the tenderness and softness of the song with its inviting hues — more enchanting than Ferngully, more tame than a jungle and pitched perfectly for Salvador’s vocals.

Luísa Sobral’s press conference

Salvador will arrive in Kyiv on May 7, right in time for the Opening Ceremony. Until then Luísa will fly the Portuguese flag. She arrived a day ahead of rehearsals with her baby boy, who is just ten months old.

A four-hour flight with such a young baby sounds like our idea of a nightmare! But apparently Salvador’s nephew behaved well and he’s being looked after in the hotel whilst Luísa performs. Luísa may have had the most unique experience in Kyiv of all the contestants yet: She had to buy diapers at the supermarket!

What did you make of Luísa’s first rehearsal? Do you think Salvador will be able to match her sister’s performance? Let us know in the comments box below!

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