Competition favourites Ukraine has been voted through to the final of the Eurovision Song Contest after the first night of the semi-finals in Turin, Italy.
Folk-rap group Kalush Orchestra performed their rousing song Stefania dressed in elaborate outfits and were one of 10 acts to proceed to the next round on Tuesday.
A total of 17 countries performed on the night, with each participating country eligible to cast a vote. Lithuania, Switzerland, Armenia, Norway, Moldova, Iceland, Greece, Portugal and the Netherlands also reached the final. But it was the end of the Eurovision journey for the seven countries who received the lowest votes — Albania, Latvia, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Croatia, Denmark and Austria.
Scroll through the gallery above for pictures from the first semi-finals of the Eurovision Song Contest.
Ten more countries will progress to the final round after the second semi-final on Thursday. They will join the "big five" countries — France, Italy, Britain, Spain and Germany — who qualify automatically for the final as per Eurovision rules. They are so called owing to their financial contributions to the European Broadcasting Union, organisers of the competition.
Leading bookmakers on fan site Eurovisionworld have installed Kalush Orchestra as the runaway favourites at this year's competition, known for its glitz and kitsch, with 40 countries participating. Italy, represented by Egyptian-Italian singer Mahmood and rising pop star Blanco, is second favourite.
After their energetic performance on Tuesday, Kalush Orchestra thanked everyone for supporting Ukraine amid the Russian invasion. Russia was barred by organisers the day after it invaded its neighbour in late February.
The semi-final featured some classic Eurovision-style performances, including Norway's Subwoolfer, who are one of the finalists. The pop group performed their song Give That Wolf A Banana dressed in their signature all-black outfits featuring yellow wolf-head masks.
Switzerland's Marius Bear also made the cut with his raw rendition of his track Boys Do Cry backdropped by simple lighting, while Iceland's act Systur, comprising three sisters, also progressed after performing their song Med haekkandi sol in a style reminiscent of Abba.
Moldova's representative Zdob si Zdub & Advahov Brothers, who were competing for a third time, secured a final berth after giving a quirky performance of their song Trenuletul, which combined rock and folk.
Also making the top 10 was the Netherlands's S10, who delivered a stripped-back rendition of her track De Diepte, and Lithuania's Monika Liu, who dazzled in a sparkly floor-length gown while giving a sultry performance of her song Sentimentai.
A total of 18 countries will take the stage at the second semi-final on Thursday with 10 countries advancing to Saturday's final, which will feature performances from 25 countries.
Italy is hosting this year's competition after rock band Maneskin triumphed at the 2021 contest. The group will perform during the ceremony, and are set to debut their new single Supermodel.
