Sanremo 2023 has concluded and Italy has selected Marco Mengoni as its representative to Eurovision. But do you know how things unfolded at Sanremo’s fourth night of the show? Let’s take a look!
The festival fourth night has traditionally been different from all other nights, as the contestants perform covers of Italian music hits and can invite guests of their choosing to sing with. This has become my favorite night to watch because we can take a break from listening to the same songs that have been played over and over throughout the week.
Hosting the show was none other than its artistic director Amadeus, who has been praised for making Sanremo exciting again and attracting a younger audience – thus breaking its stereotype of “a festival for the elderly”.
A special mention must go to the impressive Sanremo stage – it was absolutely gorgeous and resembled a spaceship. It was also three-dimensional, extending horizontally well into the theater, with the orchestra pit on both sides. As always, the focal point of the stage were the stairs, on which every show’s contestant and guest had to make their grand entrance.
Here are the three performances that resonated with me the most. Due to Rai’s copyright restrictions, only 1-minute excerpts are available on YouTube, but you can watch the full show on RaiPlay’s Sanremo page.
Paola & Chiara singing a medley of their hottest hits, accompanied by a DJ and backing dancers. The two sisters rose to fame in Italy the 90s with several dance hits, but have largely been out of the spotlight since then. This performance nostalgically took me back to when I was a kid singing along to their videos on MTV Italia.
https://youtu.be/hE24kDRe9nk
Giorgia singing Luce and Di Sole e d'Azzurro together with Elisa, to a standing ovation. Just to give you some background, Giorgia and Elisa competed against each other 22 years ago, at Sanremo 2001. Elisa went on to win the festival with her song Luce, while Giorgia got second place with Di Sole e d'Azzurro.
https://youtu.be/aJI4pdzkx3A
Marco Mengoni singing Let it Be, with the Kingdom Choir – a powerful and winning performance.
https://youtu.be/EzyJQqJBh5Y