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Dana International - Diva
Birmingham, United kingdom
Eurovision position: 1st with 172 points

Dana International at Eurovision 1998

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The committee
After few years of Israeli failures in the contest, the IBA had decided to change the methood of choosing the Israeli entry - the Kdam Eurovision, and choose the song by a special committe, a methood which prooved itself with a first Israeli winning after 20 years.
On the 23rd of November 1997, the 11 committee members have met in the Dan-Cesar hotel, and after hours of discussion and deliberations, the committee announced theire choice - the song "Diva" performed by the Israeli pop and dance singer Dana International.
The full published results were:

Internal Selection 1 9 9 8
Pos.	Artist	Title
1	Dana International	Diva
2	Arkadi Duchin & Halimonim	Tikva (Hope)

Dana International's private manager, Ofer Nissim, responded on the choise and said: "We are very proud and happy for the chance which was given to us to represent Israel, and we will do everything to make the three minutes we have on stage the most amazing and proffesional as can be. In return to the questions of the journalists if they are afraid of angry reactions whithin religious groups, who might object the fact that a singer who was once a man will represent Israel in an international event, ofer answerd: "We are aware of the fact that there might be some groups who will object the song, but I believe that IBA will give us the maximum support that we need."
Tzvika Pik, who wrote the music for "Diva" said: "When I was informed that the song I wrote won, all my body shivered. I've been trying to represent Israel in the Eurovision five times before as a performer and I couldn't make it, and now it's finally really happening! I believe that Dana is the most amazing performer in Israel. Her strong performance and the song itself will create the effect that will give us a very high chance to win the Eurovision, although our political condition."

Dana International
Dana is a very popular pop and dance singer in Israel. She was once known as Yaron Cohen but few years ago she changed her sex and became Dana. Today she is more then just a "gay symbol" in Israel and she is loved by many kinds of different populations. Her last album before the Eurovision - "Maganona" had reached the top of the selling charts in Isreal, and Dana was chosen to be the female vocalist of the year both in 1995 and 1998. Dana had perticipated in the 1995 kdam eurovision and reached the 2nd place with the song "Laila Tov Eropa"(good night Europe).

The controversy
The choosing of Dana International to represent Israel in the Eurovision Song Contest had waken up angry reactions from religious groups straight after she was chosen.
One of the many reactions came from Gabi Abotbol, the representive of Shas (Israel religious radical party) in the IBA, who had said: "I am ashame of this choice and I will do everything in order to change it. Dana is representing an exeption. the IBA is a public TV and it should send someone who represent everyone. This choise is lowering the Israeli music to the buttom."
Gil Samsonov who was the head of the Eurovision committee answerd: "The world sees us as a country of wars and terrorism and sending someone like Dana will show the world that Israel is liberated, free and modernized." Samsonov added: "Dana's song was much better than the other songs. it's a refreshing europop song which will make it's way to the top. It's true that Dana herself will cause interest in Europe but that can only give the song some more credit. It's weird that people who does not watch the Eurovision want to change our choise."
The strong reactions in Israel toward Dana had quickly gave the song and the singer many publicity around Europe and beyond. Most of the big newspaper and TV stations in Europe informed on the choice, and Dana won hundreds of interviews on TV stations and magazines weeks before the first sound of the 1998 Eurovision Song Contest had even being played.

Eurovision preperations
The director of the Diva performance was chosen to be Offer Shafrir, who directed three Israeli entries before: "Amen"(95), "Shiru"(93) and "Kaan"(91). Shafrir built a minimalist yet very impressive performance that will keep Dana at the center of the frame most of the time, when the backing singers moved slowly from one to another side of her, and made some kind of estetic human background, without "stealing" the focus from Dana even for one second.
"This is a classic standing for the camera" explains Shafrir, "We are not building on lots of movement, the opossite, We want each small movement to get a stronger effect when all the girls will make it together at the same time."
The four backing singers were Lilach Kock (Opera background), Shirley Tzafry, Galit Dahan and Talya Adler. The deligation also contained Offer Nisim, Dana's manager, and Shay Kerem.

Jean Paul Gaultier who heard about Dana inside all this media histery had decided to design her dress. Dana agreed of course, and the two met several times in Paris. The dress design was kept a top secret untill the Eurovision night, when it was revealed only at the winning act - a black dress covered by colored feathers, a dress that soon became a symbol of Dana and her Eurovision victory.

Eurovision week
The media histery surrending Dana International had only grown bigger during the Eurovision week.
Her press conferense held on Wedensday after the succesful rehearsal had atrackted about 400 journalists and photographers, the biggest amount of media comparing to all the other delegations' conferenses. Dana looked stunning and the media liked her very much. Among the questions, one brave Swedish journalist asked Dana what exactly did she do in order to change her sex, and Dana answerd that if he has time, she can personally explain it to him... This led to a big laughter in the room.

Victory!
In a thrilling round of voting, Israel's entry "Diva" was announced as a winner of the 1998 Eurovision Song contest with 172 points, only six points more than the second place, which was the United-Kingdom.
Israel accepted the winning with great enthusiasm when Dana was aannounced as the winner.Thousands of people rushed to Rabin square in Tel Aviv to celebrate. The atmosphere there was thrilling. I was there. We all shouted in joy and sang "Diva" over and over again. People jumped into the squeres fountain. The two main newspapres were published with pictures from Birmingham under titles like: "Dana-queen of the Eurovision" and "A present for Israel's 50th anniversary - A Eurovision win". Through out the day radio and television programmes joined the celebrations.

Dana International was accepted very happily in Israel by both citizents and also a government official. Tourism Minister, Moshe Katzav, invited Dana to his ministry in Jerusalem. With a huge presence of foreign and local media, the minister congratulated the winners and presented Dana a special gift as a token of the great honnor she brought to Israel. When asked if she was offended by those who refer to her as an abomination, she said she stopped paying them any attention, but said that the whole Israeli public has been insulted by this approach of the religious. She also said that in her opinion the IBA should consider holding the final in Tel Aviv. When this meeting was about to end, the minister and Ms. International kissed infront of the cameras (and assumebly infront of the religious government members eyes).
The mayor of Tel Aviv published a formal tribute to Dana, on behalf of the whole city, in the major newspapres. After all, Dana is a Tel Aviv citizen.

Dana was also a guest of honnor in the Kenesset, Israeli Parliament and of the education and culture committee.
Most of the kensset members rushed to the committee floor, even those who are not part of that specific committee. There was some delay in the scedual of her visit. First, she didn't bring her I.D. card, so just for formality, her personal details needed to be asured before entering the building. She was registered as Yaron Cohen, her childhood name, since she never changed her name officialy by the authorities. Then the Kenesset chairman tried to take her to his private office, but then everything got out of hand... All the reportres rushed towards her and some even fell down and broke a tree pot that was standing there. Then she recieved a warm hug from Kenesset member Yael Dayan, who is considered to be the gays representative in the house (though she's not one herself). Later she was rushed to committee's room for the planned meeting. The committee's chairman congratulated her for the achievement and sayed that Dana brought upon Israel great respect and joy.
Dana expressed her opinion, again, about her antagonists and asked the Kenesset to keep Democracy and manifestation freedom from any harm, in order to save Israel. She also asked not to destroy the winning celebration by these culture clashes.
She recieved another present and the meeting was over.