Jonathan Duffy is from Brisbane, Australia and is now living in Iceland. He is the Creative Director for Iceland’s Eurovision performance by artist Greta Salome.
Duffy moved to Iceland last year after he went through a break up. He had visited Iceland before, really liked it and always wondered what it would be like to live there. When the opportunity presented itself he thought he’d move and see how things went.
“If things didn’t work I would move on, if they did I would stay. They’ve gone pretty good so far,” he tells SBS.
Duffy’s role in Eurovision 2016 involves working with Icelandic Graphic Designer, Olof Erla to create a background that Greta Salome interacts with during her performance.
Duffy sat down with Greta to ask her some questions about working with an Australian and about competing in Eurovision.
“It’s very exciting. We are using technology that has never been used before in Eurovision. I can’t really say too much but the scope of the performance has been enlarged since the national finals here in Iceland,” Duffy says.
Check out a taste of what to expect from Greta and Jonathan's spectacular performance, below:
In Iceland there is a competition similar to Australian Idol, where the nation votes on who will represent them at Eurovision. The competition hosts two semifinals and a grand final before a winner is announced. Greta won this year and immediately the team had to start work on getting her performance ready for Sweden.
There is a core group of four – Olof, Duffy, a choreographer called Adgeir and Greta - who make up the team that has been working together since winning the national finals in November last year.
Duffy says they’ve taken the performance that they did in Iceland and have put everything into making the Eurovision performance huge.
“Just know that it will be amazing,” he says.
Eurovision is just one part of Duffy’s extensive artistic endeavors. He is also a comedian, cabaret performer, filmmaker and soon to be author. The 30-year-old is currently working on shows in Iceland. He co-wrote a cabaret show with another Icelandic Eurovision contestant from 2010 – Hera Bjork, about her life. The show, Hera Bjork, the queen of effing everything will premiere in Sweden just before the competition.
Greta wins the national final and becomes the Eurovision performer for Iceland. (source: Jonathan Duffy) Source: SBS
“I’m also bringing a new one man show back to Australia in December called ‘Miserable’… I also have to say I’m super excited about the possibility of meeting Julia Zemiro in Stockholm. I’m a massive fan,” Duffy says.
