Even Simon Cowell was at a loss for words after seeing a group of dancing contortionists perform on Tuesday’s episode of America’s Got Talent.
“Slightly speechless,” the judge said, before launching into a glowing evaluation. “But, to be honest with you, I just thought it was so creative, brilliant, scary. And I could tell how much work you must have put into this, because this doesn’t happen overnight.”
The act that had won him over was the Unreal Crew, a group of seven dancers from India who wore matching white-and-black suits, with their faces painted as skeletons, as they danced and contorted to ominous music. The creepiest part? The soundtrack to it all included enough cracking to keep the audience and judges cringing and gasping. Jaws dropped.
Trae Patton/NBC
While it was tough to watch at times — twisting in ways that seemed impossible — by the end, they had won over the audience and judges alike. They said they had been practicing for the show for years, and, as Cowell noted, it was evident.
Judge Sofia Vergara complimented them, too.
“Perfect audition. I mean, your personalities, the effort you put into your clothing,” she said. “The moves are incredible. I’ve never seen anything like it. It was one of the best shows we’ve seen this season.”
While Mel B didn’t weigh in verbally, she stood for the contestants.
Judge Howie Mandel then gave them a huge boost, but he teased them first.
“We see dance crews. We see contortions,” Mandel said, “but to put it all together, and to show us something in a way we’ve never seen before, and even the fact that you have an interpreter doing absolutely nothing, is also amazing. You deserve everything.”
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He then reached over and hit the final Golden Buzzer of the season that’s left to give out. The twist in the game means that the recipient is headed directly to the season’s Live Shows.
In this, the 20th season of AGT, each judge plus host Terry Crews was awarded two Golden Buzzers for the first time. They’ve previously received just one. Fans will recall that Mandel gave his first Golden Buzzer to a singer, New Orleans street performer Jourdan Blue, for his take on The Script’s “Breakeven.”
America’s Got Talent auditions continue Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on NBC.
