Joost Klein steals the show at Eurovision: A European Pope wows viewers with emotional performance

• Jorn Kompeer

  Domestic editor in Malmö

Heels on a happy hard drive, along with a dancing bird and flashing images on the screen. Not necessarily what television viewers have been used to from the Netherlands during the Eurovision Song Contest in recent years. Klein’s hit is a polished pop song A European Pope of course not, although the Netherlands subscribed to that in the last bids. By choosing Joost Klein, the organized broadcaster AVROROS is taking a completely new tack tonight.

This year the energy is bursting from the stage, with an act that can best be described as three minutes of pure joy. But also with an emotional layer, such as at the end where Joost Klein talks to his dead father through the camera. There are also references to Klein’s deceased parents at other times, for example on the backstage screens.

Klein and his friends, two of whom are also on stage, tried to keep as much of the performance a secret in recent weeks. From time to time they let something go, like when the act’s co-creator Gover Meit talked about “a new version of landing. People won’t believe this is physically possible”.

The speculation ended yesterday when the media and the public were invited to see the act in full for the first time.

In that act it is amazing that Klein and his team use everything that the mega television studio in the Malmö Arena has to offer. The show begins with a camera directly at the top of the room, so that the viewer can see that the cross-shaped platform has turned to Joost Klein’s face. Then there is himself in the picture, waving at the camera with the text “I Love you all”.

He makes that contact with the viewers and the listeners more often. He repeatedly asks the audience to join him. At the same time, the viewer sees a variety of images passing by on the big screen behind Klein: from a globe and a sea of ​​fire​​​​to a German currywurst.

In the end, it is impossible to miss that this performance builds to a height, when Klein and his friends begin to split. At the same time, the 90’s hit the sound through the arena and the crowd starts to scream.

Here’s what those heels looked like yesterday during dress rehearsal:

Anyone looking specifically for Joost Klein will have to be patient, as he will only have his sixteenth and very last turn tonight. Then the phone lines open and the viewers decide which ten countries they want to see in the final. The results will continue for more than half an hour after Klein’s performance.

Although it was still very exciting last year that the Netherlands would reach the final, the signs are now more favorable. Since the presentation of A European Popeat the end of February, the number went up with bettors, who calculate which songs are most likely to win. A European Pope it started at position 22 out of 37, but quickly rose into the top 10, with position three being its highest ranking. In the last few days the number went down a little, to the sixth place.

A place in the final for Joost Klein seems certain, but that does not mean that there is no competition.

Nemo from Switzerland is also classified in this semi-final. The number The Code describes the figurative journey the artist took to become himself. At the same time, everything happens on the stage, with a turntable on which the artist spins in circles.

And then tonight there’s a charged performance by singer Eden Golan from Israel. It’s been there for months discussion about the participation of the country. Today, large protests were announced in Malmö, which could attract tens of thousands of people.

As for the music, many Eurovision experts think that the song is Israeli Hurricane can count on many sympathy votes and may easily reach the final.