Eurovision seen by those who love it

She did not win Eurovision on Saturday, but La Zarra, a Montreal singer representing France, was able to convince many fans of the competition, disappointed by her defeat. To Montreal, The Press went to the Champs bar to attend alongside fervent fans the viewing of this colorful event, which crowned Sweden this year.

“At Eurovision, there is something queer, something camp, something political. It’s too good! »

The Champs, boulevard Saint-Laurent, is crowded. It’s Saturday afternoon and the Eurovision final, which is taking place in Liverpool, is about to begin. But before, drag queens perform on stage, covering songs in the competition. It screams, it sings and it dances. The table is set and we understand when we arrive at the establishment that the afternoon will be incredible.

“Someone described Eurovision as the Olympics for gays, and I completely agree,” Allison told us at the start of the evening. She and her friends have followed the pageant every year for the past five years, attending screenings at Cabaret Mado or hosting gatherings at home.

The atmosphere will remain charged until the beginning of the evening, when Loreen, the singer representing Sweden, who had already won the competition in 2012, is crowned.

However, a cloud of disappointment set in during the (very long) points award ceremony. It quickly became clear that France, whose colors Quebecer La Zarra wore, could not reach the top of the rankings, let alone win. Exclamations of surprise and disapproval rang out loud when France’s meager points harvest was announced. ” I will get angry ! We’re not even in the top 10 ! “Launched Aris Djebbar, a 25-year-old Frenchman, who came alone to the Champs to watch the final with other enthusiasts like him.

On a raised platform throughout her performance, wearing a sumptuous sequined dress matching her fascinator, La Zarra took the stage sixth. She performed her play beautifully Obviously in a decor without great artifice, unlike the vast majority of the other participants, who seemed to want to do as much as possible. After the jets of flames concluding her number, the crowd, in Liverpool as in the Champs, cheered her.

L’artiste a dû tomber de haut en apprenant qu’elle ne finissait que 16^e au classement. Il semble même qu’elle ait envoyé un doigt d’honneur vers la caméra lors de l’annonce de ses résultats. Les images la montrant faire le geste ont beaucoup circulé sur les réseaux sociaux, certains trouvant le moment amusant ou à propos, d’autres reprochant à l’artiste d’avoir mal réagi.

Aimer l’Eurovision avec passion

L’Eurovision est l’évènement télévisé non sportif le plus regardé au monde. Parmi les près de 200 millions de téléspectateurs, une centaine s’étaient réunis au Champs afin de vivre ensemble leur passion pour ce spectacle de variétés sur stéroïdes. Lorsqu’on aime l’Eurovision, on l’aime intensément. Le concours est aussi kitsch qu’il est captivant.

L’auteure de ces lignes n’avait jamais visionné de finale de ce concours musical pourtant si populaire. Il n’a pas fallu longtemps avant que toutes les règles, un petit historique du concours et un CV de chaque participant ne nous soient communiqués par des passionnés rencontrés sur place.

Après quatre heures de finale, nous étions nous-même complètement investie dans la compétition, avec nos favoris et nos déceptions, et même une certaine fébrilité au moment de l’annonce des points.

Pourtant, au départ, nous n’y comprenions pas grand-chose. « Je suis une vraie encyclopédie ! », nous a lancé Aris Djebbar, après s’être gentiment approché en constatant que nous peinions à suivre.

Le jeune homme regarde le concours depuis qu’il a 12 ans. Né dans une famille plutôt conservatrice, il y a trouvé son « échappatoire ». « C’est extravagant, c’est musical et c’est queer », a-t-il dit lors d’une pause devant le bar, calculée en fonction des artistes qu’il apprécie le moins (car, fait surprenant, la finale est diffusée sans interruption). « Quand j’ai vu le concours pour la première fois, [la drag queen] Conchita Wurst represented Austria, he said. But relatives [désapprouvaient], but I had a dumbfounded look and it was like a revelation. »

La Zarra and the others

When Alessandra, Norway’s ambassador, arrives on stage in her costume making her look like a Scandinavian goddess, we are told that her hard-hitting number is “the quintessence of what Eurovision is”. When it’s Belgium’s turn, the fabulous singer Gustaph presents a number showcasing 1990s queer pop, voguing, eccentricity. A drag queen joins him for an incredible dance number and the Champs bar goes wild.

Michaël Pallier, a fervent fan of the competition, found it even more interesting to follow his country because a Quebecer represented it.

Remember that the residents of a country cannot vote for their nation. The first part of the competition points is awarded by a jury from each country; the rest of the points (which can change the outcome of the vote) are awarded by the public. For the first time this year, the vote was open internationally. At the bar, several immediately looked at their phones at the opening of the ballot.

Briton Hugo Sothcott, who has lived in Montreal for four years, has been following Eurovision for 27 years. “It’s a real annual tradition in my life, it’s so unifying, he explained to us. It makes me feel European, and as an English person, there aren’t many occasions for that to happen. Here, there are not so many people who know about Eurovision, but we always have events like [celui au Champs] to gather. »

The general manager of the Champs, Robert Jennings, hopes that the event, presented by the drag queen Psyberia, can become a tradition for the bar. All kinds of queer community events take place in this bar, acquired a few years ago, and whose vocation has expanded to be much more than a sports pub.

“Bars are not always places where people from the queer community in general feel safe, explained Robert Jennings, met in front of his establishment. We wanted to have a place where that was possible. People know they have the peace of mind to be able to have fun without risk. »

The enthusiastic cries of the hundred people gathered, as if to support his point, reach us outside and make him smile. In a hurry to go back to see the performances, we go back to join the group. So that’s the Eurovision fever.