Week after week, new hopefuls arrive at the America has talent stage and impress the judges and enthusiastic audiences with epic routines, and during the seventh week of auditions for season 19 on Tuesday, the numbers were some of the most mesmerizing and jaw-dropping yet!
This week’s lineup of performers included a young contortionist, an inspiring singer-songwriter, an acrobat duo, a talented choir, an impressive stand-up comedian, and more!
Host Terry’s Teams topped the mind-boggling list of auditions, which were overseen by longtime judges Howie Mandel, Heidi Klum, Sofia Vergara It is Simon Cowellwho were looking for some truly exceptional artists.
However, it was a really strange night in many ways — mainly because of the Golden Buzzer antics.
Halfway through Tuesday’s show, an Australian comedian surprised the judges when he came up to the table during his bit (which wasn’t going so well) and hit the Golden Buzzer for himself! Despite the slow-motion shots and metallic confetti, this obviously didn’t count, but it was certainly unexpected.
However, what was equally unexpected was Vergara’s choice for the night’s Golden Buzzer!
Japanese comedy duo Schumacher took to the stage for an almost indescribable act, in which they transformed themselves into animals through a mix of hilarious and strangely impressive costume changes and pantomime.
While all the judges were impressed by the totally unexpected audition, the disconcerting quality seemed to be what drew Vergara in in a way she didn’t even seem to understand.
“What is it? Like, a dance or a puppet or a transformation? A quick change? I don’t know! I’m, like, so confused, because I thought it was ridiculous. It’s, like, absurd. I don’t know what it is,” Vergara said. “But I really, really think you deserve it.”
She then pressed the golden button and left both comedians stunned.
“It was the most fun we had all day, all week!” Vergara explained when asked about her decision.
“Is this a dream?” asked one of the comedians, astonished.
“No, it’s real,” Cowell shared. “(It was) brilliant. Seriously, brilliant.”
Check out some of the biggest and most epic performances of the night:
My Soleil
Illya and Anastasia Strakhov
Jerusalem Youth Choir
Jabu and Cornelius
Horse
Mervin Mayonnaise
Insane Shayne
Alexander Batuev
Dian Rene
ET spoke to the judges at the AGT red carpet ahead of the season 19 audition rounds, and they opened up about why giving each of them a second Golden Buzzer is a real game changer.
“Talent is subjective. When you put a singer next to a dancer, next to a dangerous act, next to a magician — they each need their own buzzer!” Crews shared. “I just think it’s perfect! And I’ve said this before, AGT is constantly evolving… (and) is improving each time a new evolution emerges.”
Cowell — who created AGT and also serves as an executive producer on the series — came up with the idea for the second Golden Buzzer and explained to ET that the idea came to him when he considered “the amount of time and effort that these people put into this act and where it can go.”
“People come from all over the world, as well as American artists, and you see[amazing]things,” Cowell said of the magic of the show. “The 70 times I just said, ‘How did you come up with that idea?!’ That’s what I love about the show, you know? It just keeps surprising you.”
America has talent airs Tuesdays at 8pm ET/PT on NBC.