entertainment">“Incredibly impressive what is happening here. We can be proud of that, ”said the king about the work. The king was given the tour by, among others, Sietse Bakker, the executive producer of the Songfestival in Rotterdam. “The build-up continues unabated,” he says. “We have taken the king to the technical heart of production. We also went on stage with him. For us that was also the first time that we were on the podium. ”
entertainment">During the Eurovision Song Contest, the Ahoy arena is completely occupied by the 52-meter wide stage and the so-called green room, the seating areas for the participating artists and their supporters. “We can start rehearsing in a few days,” says Bakker. “Starting with the technical rehearsals, but also the opening acts, presentation moments and of course the scoring. Because absolutely nothing should go wrong there. ”
entertainment">Also proud of the construction is Erwin Rintjema, the head of technology at the Rotterdam event. “We started on the roof ten days ago,” he says. “We covered that completely. We are talking about 1800 automated lamps, sound equipment, video screens and cameras. Almost too many to list. There is also a transparent LED screen on the ceiling. We have been busy in consultation with the constructor of the roof where we could hang something. That was quite a puzzle, partly because we use a lot of moving parts. Now there is more than 200 tons of weight hanging from the ceiling, more than ever hung on it. ”
Setback
entertainment">While the construction of the stage is progressing, the organization had to deal with a setback in recent days, because Australia will definitely not travel to Rotterdam to participate. “We have taken this into account,” says Bakker. “As for Australia, we knew it was going to be exciting. There are many Australians who cannot go home. It’s a real shame. For the time being, all other participants are planning to come to the Netherlands and we hope it will stay that way. ”
entertainment">There is still a plan to receive an audience during the Eurovision Song Contest. “We still have a scenario with an audience and a scenario without an audience,” says Bakker. “The Eurovision Song Contest takes place in the week of 17 May. That feels close. We will look at how the situation develops from day to day and week to week in order to make the most sensible decision. Over the past year we have noticed that the situation can change almost every day. ”
entertainment">The Eurovision Song Contest will take place in the Netherlands for the first time in more than forty years, after Duncan Laurence won the international music festival in 2019 with the song Arcade.
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