Fifteen participants of the longlist for the National Selection for the 2026 Junior Eurovision Song Contest took part in the first-ever open audition. The event was held on Sunday, 26 July, with the support of the official partners “Respublika Park” shopping center and “Neopolis” amusement park.
Performances were rated by celebrity mentors: Svitlana Tarabarova, music producer for the National Selection for the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2026; alyona alyona, songwriter and Ukraine’s representative at Eurovision 2024; and MÉLOVIN, singer and Ukraine’s representative at Eurovision 2018.
Here is the list of the Vidbir participants who performed original songs and covers, demonstrating that they are ready to represent Ukraine with dignity on the international stage:
- Band VYHOR
- Maria Blyznjuk
- Katerina Vatan
- Sofia and Veronika Vozniiak
- Vlad Danilevskyi
- Roman Doroshenko
- Sofia Dupelych
- Dmytro Karabet
- Erika Kolesnichenko
- Sofiya Nazarenko
- Anastasiia Poshedina
- Marko Serdynskyi
- Zlata Solonenko
- Oliviia Tkachyk
- Karina Shtefanesa
The audience also saw a joint performance by Svitlana Tarabarova and alyona alyona alongside participants of the Vidbir, who performed the National Selection anthem «Dream Boldly» and the song «Manifesto».
Furthermore, during the audition breaks Sofia Nersesian, Artem Kotenko and Anastasia Dimid performed.
At the end of the audition Svitlana Tarabarova addressed the audience: «We need your support, because only together can we feel happy and strong!»
Following the auditions, 10 participants will be selected to attend the «Star School» in Bukovel. Their names will be announced in the August episodes of «Junior Eurovision Diaries», which will be broadcast on Suspilne’s platforms.
More photos from the audition here.
Respublika Park is a super-regional shopping and entertainment centre that opened in November 2021 in Kyiv, with a total area of 300,000 square metres. The centre is owned by the Austrian company Trafin Consulting und Entwicklungs GmbH, which was founded in Vienna in 2013 and operates in the property sector.
Neopolis is a technology-based entertainment park within the Respublika Park shopping and entertainment centre in Kyiv, combining modern attractions, interactive experiences, VR entertainment, video games, events and spaces for celebrations. The park covers 11,000 square metres.
As a reminder, last year Lou Deleuze from France won the Junior Eurovision Song Contest with the song ‘Ce monde’, but France declined to host the contest, so this year’s Junior Eurovision Song Contest will be held in Malta for the third time. Ukraine’s representative, Sofia Nersesyan, came second last year with the song ‘Motanka’.
Suspilne Kultura and Radio Promin are the official media partners of Eurovision.
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