Today the rehearsals for Eurovision 2026 continue in Vienna. Countries rehearsing on Day 2 include Montenegro, Estonia, Israel, Belgium, Lithuania, San Marino, Poland, and Serbia. The fourth to rehearse today is Belgium’s ESSYLA.
What did we learn about ESSYLA’s staging?
ESSYLA’s performance begins with a sense of darkness, mystery and intrigue as she begins with a shot of her billowing in front of a wind machine. She is wearing a large cape that stretches a long distance behind her, which is described as being “almost transparent”.
She starts off standing still before walking to the front of the stage, where she meets her four dancers. There, her dancers rip the cape from her outfit before throwing it to the side of the stage as the troupe begin to get involved in choreography. The LED screens also allude to an icy landscape as she is seen standing on icicles and crystals during her performance.
Throughout the performance, themes of a battle of the elements are prolific. Eventually, the battle is ultimately won, but by which side? ESSYLA will leave you guessing. She also is under deluge after a huge wave of snow tumbles down onto her in the final run-through.
Who is ESSYLA?
ESSYLA is the stage name of Alice Van Eesbeeck, a singer born in Perwez in Wallonia, Belgium’s francophone region. Growing up in between Flanders and Wallonia, she showed a musical prowess from a young age, adopting her stage name as she was getting into the music scene. She first gained notoreity in 2020 when she competed in The Voice Belgique, finished second behind Jérémie Makiese, who would represent Belgium in 2022. Since then, she has released solo music, with her debut single being released one year later.
Belgium’s Eurovision Journey
Belgium was one of the debutant countries at the beginning of the Eurovision Song Contest back in 1956. For the first edition, countries could submit two songs, and for Belgium that year, ‘Messieurs les noyès de la Seine’ by Fud Leclerc and ‘Le plus beau jour de ma vie’ by Mony Marc represented the nation. To this day we do not know the final results of Eurovision 1956. Belgium have taken part in 64 Eurovision Song Contests; however, they have only ever won once: in 1986 with Sandra Kim and the song ‘J’amie la vie’, scoring 176 points.
Belgium chose Red Sebastian to represent the nation with “Strobe Lights” in 2025. Competing in the first semi-final, Belgium scored 23 points, placing fourteenth and ultimately missing out on the Grand Final for the second year in a row.
What do you think of “Dancing on the ice”? Does ESSYLA stand a chance of winning? Let us know your thoughts! Also, be sure to follow “That Eurovision Site” on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok as we prepare for Eurovision 2026!
News Source: EBU
Photo Credit: Valen Photography