The 'ninjas' who swap out Eurovision Song Contest sets in 48 seconds

VIENNA - You will barely notice them on television, but a small band of stage hands nicknamed "ninjas" at the Eurovision Song Contest perform a feat as impressive as those on stage: swapping out countries' sets in the 48 seconds between acts.

Although a huge LED-screen stage and backdrop provide many of the visual cues, each of the 25 countries competing in Saturday's final of the contest has its own physical set that has to be hauled on to and off the stage and, in the case of the contest favourite Finland, set on fire.

All in less than a minute.

"That's the set-up time these 20-odd people have to move from one 'prop' to the next and from one show's set-up and dismantling to the next. It's just mad what they manage to achieve," said Christian Elgner, who, as head of props, oversees the sets, known as props in the contest's jargon.

Each movement must be carefully planned and rehearsed by the group of two dozen stage hands, a performance all the more impressive given that they are mainly locals who are doing it as a side hustle.

"We have to be always in a rush and we are not allowed to make any mistakes because once we make a mistake the show is over," said Ahmed Abdelati, a civil engineering student from Egypt living in Austria.

"I'm working here because I love music, like my other colleagues," he said.

In a matter of weeks, the team dressed in black has become a well-oiled machine.

"I'm not sure who first used that term but it's taken off in the past three, four days: backstage ninjas. I mainly call them dancers because the (set) assembly is danced - it's choreographed," Elgner said.

"There haven't been any big mishaps so far. We rehearse often enough to always learn from the mishaps we have and to perfect everything."

-Francois Murphy, Editing by Timothy Heritage/Reuters