Tamar Kaprelian was a queen on an otherworldly throne and Gata Band had everyone on their feet. So it was not a surprise both were fan favourites on social media during tonight’s first semi-final of Depi Evratesil. What was a surprise? That neither of them advanced.

Instead, the five qualifiers, who were announced in random order, were: Mger Armenia, Robert Koloyan, Gevorg Harutyunyan, Lusine Mardanyan and Nemra.

The qualifiers

Gevorg Harutyunyan opened the show with “Stand Up” and had the most dramatic performance of the night. Much akin to his Depi Evratesil performances from last year, Gevorg showed his acting talents to deliver a captivating performance.

Tamar Kaprelian may not have made it through but her Nvak Foundation student Lusine Mardanyan did. With a performance set entirely in black and white, Lusine painted a beautiful picture. She stood out among a sea of underwhelming upbeat songs in the first half of the draw.

Much has been written about Mger Armenia but the self-proclaimed winner of Depi Evratesil lives on. The Wiwi Jury may not have been a fan of his song but his vocals were certainly on point, unlike many of the acts that came before him.

Nemra delivered arguably the most interesting staging of the night. The backdrop read “No show — enjoy the music” on a black screen and it seems the music won the crowd over. “I’m a Liar” may be a bit repetitive at times but the interesting vocals made this one pop out.

Robert Koloyan was sandwiched between the big favourite and the biggest grower of the night. Despite that, he went through while they failed. “Get Away With Us” was performed with high energy and dramatic staging, earning Robert a place in the final.

The show also included a performance by Armenia’s Junior Eurovision 2017 representative Misha. He performed his song “Boomerang” as the interval act for tonight’s show.

Depi Evratesil 2018 Semi-final 1 running order

Gevorg Harutyunyan Angel Lusine Mardanyan Zhanna Davtyan Mger Armenia Nemra Hayk Kasparov Tamar Kaprelian Robert Koloyan Gata Band

Semi-final 2

The second semi-final will take place on Thursday 22 February, with ten more acts competing for spots in the grand final. Among them is Depi Evratesil returnee Asmik Shiroyan who will perform “You and I”, as well as drag queen Kamil who will perform “Puerto Rico”.