Life after JESC – Sophia Patsalides!

“When I got back from Malta, I pretty much continued my life, even though it was kind of hard to bounce back to reality.  What will always stick in my memory was when I walked into my classroom for the first time after the concert and my classmates completely surprised me by starting to clap and cheer: it was amazing.  Of course my relatives welcomed me back with lots of hugs and good comments too.”

As for a single defining memory of Junior Eurovision, Sophia says it was, well, everything. “The whole situation, everything about the event. I’ll keep every single minute in my memory forever.”

Waiting to go on stage for both rehearsals and the final performances, Sophie felt a range of emotions. “This is what I love doing, so it was a combination of feeling energetic, excited and nervous, but all in a good way.  Afterwards, I felt really relieved and happy with my performance, but sad that it was over at the same time.”

And did she have a favourite song amongst all of the JESC entries?  “I loved every single one of them, but Ula’s ‘Nisi sam/Your Light’ has a special place in my heart,” she says.

There was little time to sit back and reflect on JESC when Sophia arrived home.  “As soon as I got back from the contest it was straight into rehearsals for my school’s annual talent show, which was held on the 21st and 22nd of November.  I sang ‘There are worse things I can do’ which is from the musical Grease.”

You can see and hear her performance here: https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=653838778059584&set=vr.653838778059584&type=3&theater

“After that, there was another round of rehearsals to get ready for the school Christmas concert. This was held on the 16th of December which was also my birthday.  We performed the musical ‘Scrooge’ and I played young Scrooge’s fiancee.”

When asked for what advice she would give anyone who had dreams of entering the Junior Eurovision Song Contest, Sophia is quick to respond.  “I would recommend the experience to anyone and suggest that you should always stay positive, give your best self and don’t lose hope!”