America's Got Talent Recap: No Second Performances?

Hey all we are finally up to Vegas week on America's Got Talent. Now it's up to the judges to decide who will move on to the top 40 and fight for America's vote. My early favorites are Kevin Skinner, the Eriam Sisters, Kelli Glover, and Ciana, the eight-year old singer from last week. I think all four have a good chance to make the semifinals, and Kevin Skinner is a lock of course.

Nick Cannon starts out saying how huge it would be for an act to play in Vegas, like the winner of the show will get to do. Last year it was only a one night gig at Vegas though- I wonder if that changed this year. And of course in the clip they show a huge sign of Terry Fator, season 2 winner and by far the biggest success story this show has had.

Right now there are over 160 acts, so over 120 will be cut by the end of the week.

This year the judges made some early cuts before the acts even get to perform again for the judges. That seems a bit harsh to me- why not let the acts all perform and see which ones improved from their first audition? Maybe some of the fringe acts would really shine in that situation.

The judges are shown deliberating while watching clips of all the auditions. I'm worried that Piers and David both say an act is not going to win while a clip of Kelli Glover's audition is being shown. I know that doesn't mean anything but I fear they may cut one of my favorites without getting to hear her again.

The acts are split up into four groups, a la American Idol. It is unclear how many of the four groups will be going on to the next round. I'm assuming only one group will be cut but you never know.

After the judges' dramatic entrance David tells the contestants some of them will be cut right now. Group A includes that genius Asian piano player, the Obama impersonator the yodeling dominatrix, Barbara Padilla, those kid dancers who dress up like clowns, that jazzy singer who auditioned last year, the kid ballroom dancers, Acrodunk and a bunch of others, and they are through to the next round.

Group B includes those kid dancers with the red wigs, the magician who floated the microphone in the air, Ciana, the cleft lip singer, and others. Wow Sharon announces that they are going home. Too bad I really liked Ciana and the magician. That boy guitar prodigy Tallan got cut too! Wow I can't believe they cut him and Ciana and left the Obama impersonator and the clown kid dancers.

Now two groups are left and only one will be going through to the next round. So that means they cut about half the people in one swoop. Group C has Grandma Lee, the guy who stuck a fish hook through his nose, the annoying young singer who plays piano, the old guy dancer, and the dog dancer. Group D has the old lady dancer and Kevin Skinner, which I assume means Group D is through since there is no way Kevin is being cut. But I thought I saw Voices with Glory in Group C. Hmm... Turns out both groups are going through. I'm happy for the fish hook guy, Kevin Skinner, and both older dancers but I still can't believe they put the bad kid singer in (the one with the curly hair who plays keyboard) and not the good one (Ciana).

Hey the violin playing triplets who can't sing got through, along with one of the magicians and the boy break dancer. Only 25 acts were cut in this early round, presumably acts the judges thought had no chance to win. I would beg to differ on Ciana and Tallan though...

Seriously- the dancers where the small girl lifts the fat guy gets through and Ciana and Tallan don't??? What's wrong with these judges???

Also through are the bass singer, the Asian teenage singer with the big jazz voice, the singing group of post office workers, and a bunch of others who celebrate in Vegas that night. Love the danceoff between one of the hip hop dancers and Carol Lugo (the 62-year old woman dancer).

Now all the acts have been summoned to the holding area, and the judges are still deliberating, especially over the magic acts, singers, and dancers. OMG the David Hasselhoff song guy got through- I want to see him perform just to see what he will do next!

They especially are debating over the hip hop dance acts, which are all very similar to each other. The judges can't decide which one is the best.

They are having such a hard time they decide to talk to some of the acts individually. First up is Keith Johnson, a singer who I believe sang "Walking in Memphis" in his first audition not nearly as well as Eli Mattson did last year. The second one is Pete, the Obama impersonator. Overall I like the singer better since he has some talent and the Obama guy was not funny at all.

Piers was not impressed with Keith's singing but thinks he looks the part. David believes he gets the audience's attention. Of course Keith tells the audience how he has a kid at home he wants to make proud to garner up some sympathy points.

Pete wants to tell the judges his act is not a joke for him. Who said that it was?

Keith breaks down in front of the judges, and Pete adds that he has been doing comedy for 40 years. But Keith has been working his whole life for his. Neither of them are going to win, but I'm rooting for Keith. Piers correctly points out there are better singers than Keith, which may doom him since I don't remember seeing too many impersonators besides Pete. Keith cries some more in front of the judges, and they turn to deliberate. Keith though is still cut by the judges. That's heartbreaking to watch even though I agree with the judges' conclusion about there being better singers.

Pete says being cut would be devastating to his career. He of course is put through to the next round, so James Brown Barack Obama lives for another day.

Wow wait they are filling spots in the top 40 already? Without even giving the acts another chance to perform? That's kind of weird... I thought this was just cutting them down to the top 70 or whatever. No way does this guy deserve to be in the top 40 but I guess they needed an impressionist.

Next in the theater is Arcadian, the Billy Elliot-like dancer. He wants to show kids it is okay to not be jocks. He should get through I think. David fears he may be too young (he's only 13)- but there are younger acts in this show. Yay he is through! Good for him he was great! Aw his mom looks so happy.

Other acts in the top 40 include Acrodunk (no surprise there), the Platt Brothers (those brothers who wore the blue suits and flipped over each other), the Blue Man group wannabes (really?), the David Hasselhoff song guy (yay!!!!), the Asian teen singer, the kid ballroom dancers, the girl rock singers (really?), Mosaic- the a capella group from last week (yay again!), the Cowboy Tenors (I didn't think they were that good but I did enjoy them), the yodeling dominatrix (yay!), and a good tap group I don't remember.

It seems like they are going for a lot of variety this year, which explains why so many novelty acts are getting through over all the singers and dancers.

Next up is Anthony, the 74 year old disco dancer. I figure he is probably out since they didn't put him in the montage. I think Carol Lugo is better anyway. Anthony says he never thought this would happen and getting through would make his life complete. But alas his time on AGT has come to an end. I'm okay with this if Carol gets through. Tony looks really annoyed and says he won't come back next year. That's too bad he really does have talent.

Next to see the judges are Euphoria, Destined 2 Be, and Breaksk8, three dance groups. Breaksk8 were the ones on skates who were just okay. Destined 2 Be are very good hip hop dancers, and Euphoria is a group of dance teachers who in the brief clip shown look like the best of the three.

Piers says they could not decide which group to send home so he is challenging them all to dance to the same piece of music. In 12 hours the judges will watch each of them and decide based on that who to send home. That sounds fair- why didn't they do that for the other acts? He guarantees not all of them will be going through.

The last two magicians are Drew Thomas and Joseph Constantine. Drew was the one who had the floating sheets with the ladies who came out under them. Then he went into a closet on the stage and re-appeared under one of the sheets. Joseph Constantine is the one who barely got through because the judges thought his act had been done a hundred times before. This led to a big debate between Piers and David. I actually liked him better than Drew though I liked the one that was cut already the best. Joseph reminds us he lost his house recently and almost quit magic because it wasn't paying the bills. He has a good story but the judges seem to like Drew better.

The judges couldn't decide whether to put one of them through or none of them through. Joseph is indeed cut. He and his wife are in tears but promise to be together no matter what. And as I figured Drew is put to the finals. He was good but his act got a bit repetitive with the sheets until the end. Hopefully he'll take it to the next level in the quarterfinals.

After the break we find out the fate of the Spiritual Harmonizers, the postal workers who sing together. I still don't agree that the lead singer sounds like Stevie Wonder- in fact I thought he was the weak link of the group. Since the other a capella group already got through I wonder what will happen to these guys. They'll probably get through but after seeing some of the other mediocre acts get through who knows.

David tells them they are very good but there are a lot of other singing acts, including a capella groups. Wow they are cut. I do like Mosaic better but since they got the "pimp" spot at the end of the show I thought for sure they would go through. To their credit they were gracious in defeat.

More cuts: Two more dance acts I don't remember, the belly dancer woman, Bang a Rang (a tai chi dance act), and two burlesque acts.

Next up is Haido Torres, the break dancer/contortionist dude. I didn't love his act but he is good at what he does. He should get through though since his act is so unique. His mother is supporting him even though he's never had formal dance lessons. He says being in Vegas has let him believe in himself. The judges toy with him a bit and tell him it is a hard decision. Sharon wishes him well and says they are glad to have discovered him before anyone else. Of course it's just for suspense as he is put through to the finals. Aw he calls him mom afterwards and she sounds so excited!

After the break we catch up with Lawrence, the bass singer who I liked only when he sang higher notes. He has been chasing this dream for a long time and needs a break like this. Also learning his fate is Kevin Skinner, who I'm sure will get through since he's a favorite to win.

I think both will get through but if only one will it is Kevin for sure. Kevin feels out of place in Vegas- it's like a different world to him. He feels this is his time to shine and getting through would make his family proud.

Kevin tells the judges it would mean a lot to him to go through, and Lawrence says the same. David says the judges deliberated a lot on Kevin, and Sharon says Lawrence is going up against a lot of other good singers. But indeed both of them are going through to the next round, which may be bad news for Kelli Glover and the other singers on this show.

So what are your thoughts on tonight's show? Were you surprised by any of the cuts? Who are your early favorites from the people who got through tonight? Mine are Kevin Skinner, the David Hasselhoff song guy, and Mosaic. Post your comments below.

America's Got Talent Recap: More Auditions, Yay?

Hey all I can't believe we are STILL on audition shows for America's Got Talent. When does Vegas week start already? The only good thing is none of the "pimped" talents being shown at the end of each episode have impressed me yet but now there is still time for one to do so.


Tonight we are back for more NYC auditions. Hey maybe I'll see someone I know....

Glad to see the quick judges' introduction this week.

First up is government contractor Jeffrey Widom. He has a serious job but feels good inside when he sings and even hums at work. His "singing" however consists mostly of yelling and awkwardly bopping to the music. Too bad he seems like a nice guy but he gets X'd right away. Jeffrey then takes that as a cue to start singing some Sinatra, and it's slightly better but that's not saying much. He gets booed off the stage.

Bad act montage: Alex Feldman makes weird faces, plays a recorder with his nose (Ew!) and pulls a bra out of his shirt. Dorothy Bishop looks like Janice Dickinson and probably sings like her too. Chris Evans takes off his shirt and does some double-jointed stuff. At least he actually has talent unlike the other acts so far. David Glass does a horrible Elvis impersonation and apparently doesn't know the word "stop". Nick literally has to push him off the stage.

Hey another cute kid! He is nine-year-old Tallan Noble Latz and he plays guitar. He does even have musical background in his family, and he loves coming home from school so he can practice playing. He adds that if he wins the million he will want his mom to quit work so he can spend time with her. Aw... Not very realistic, but still adorable. Sharon asks him what style of music he likes and he says rock/blues. He even got his father into blues! He names a bunch of his influences, and I'm embarrassed to admit I've never heard of any of them except Jimi Hendrix. Anyway he starts playing and the kid is amazing! If I closed my eyes I would have thought it was a professional. Though I'm not sure how many people can listen to just guitar playing for an hour-long show. He even has stage presence, rocking his head with the music. David says he has a great career ahead of him, and he loves Tallan's attitude. Piers has a nine-year-old son who can barely play "Three Blind Mice", so he is amazed at how well Tallan played. Sharon says he has the soul and charisma as well. He of course gets through to Vegas, along with a standing ovation from the crowd.

After the break we get a brief glimpse of a sexy dancing duo who get through to Vegas. They looked really good in the short clip but we don't get to see much of them. Boo.

Next up is 74-year-old Tony Ferrante. Based on his outfit I'm guessing he's an Elvis impersonator. He is a retired barber who always dreamed to be onstage. Well he'll either be like the Sinatra impersonator last year or he'll be a disaster. I'm guessing the latter. And of course I'm wrong on both fronts. He's a disco dancer, not an Elvis impersonator, and he is pretty good. There is a weird leg stretch thing that doesn't look like dancing, but the rest of the routine was quite entertaining. Not quite as good as the 62-year-old dancer from a few episodes ago, but that's understandable since he's 12 years her senior. Considering my father was impressed with the 62-year-old I'm sure he'll be in awe of this too. Piers oddly X's him, but the crowd and other judges are loving it. He doesn't even look out of break at the end! Sharon says he is entertaining and has lots of rhythm. Piers though doesn't think Tony's act is worth a million dollars. That's probably true but I still think he's good enough to go to Vegas- the judges can weed out all the lesser acts later, but as long as they have some potential they should go to the next round. David says the act made him feel like dancing. Piers of course says no, but David and Sharon (after a dramatic pause of course) say yes, so Tony is off to Vegas! The crowd demands an encore, so he comes back on stage one more time, much to Piers' chagrin.

Now about halfway through the show we find out that there are two more weeks of auditions (still???) before the Vegas round. Then like last year the acts will perform again for the judges, with the top 40 facing the audience vote in the semifinals. In the montage of acts through so far are some of my faves, namely Kevin Skinner and the Eriam Sisters, along with some other early favorites like the ballroom dancing kids, the siblings who brought their mother out of a coma by singing, and the yodeling dominatrix. But why are they putting this in the middle of the show? Why not wait until the end so that audiences don't accidentally fast forward through it?

Good act montage: Arthur Gulkarov looks like a belly dancer and starts out putting his arms and hands behind his head on opposite sides. That doesn't seem too impressive, but then he does a bunch of quick spins in a row. That's all we see of him but I hope he does more spinning because the beginning of the dance was just weird. Nathan Burton is a magician who puts a woman on a chair on one half of the stage, puts a sheet over it, and then has her reappear on a platform on the other side of the stage! That was really cool. I've liked a lot of the magicians so far this season but I'm afraid only one or two will make the semifinals. African High Fliers do lots of acrobats and tumbling, and even make a human pyramid. They were good, but I've seen that kind of thing a lot before on this show.

Next up is Kelli Glover, a singer who auditioned for AI Season 1. And unlike last week, where several reality show rejects auditioned for AGT and it was never brought up, we actually see the clip of Kelly not getting through to the top 10. Hey a Brian Dunkleman sighting!!! Jim Verraros got to the top 10 instead of her, and I remember that Jim getting through was a big surprise. After doing some Youtube research it seems she originally sang a Whitney Houston song in the semis where she sounded decent but not amazing, and the judges called her out for sounding too much like Whitney. They brought her back for the wildcard and she did better, though still not blowing me or the judges away. Here is the clip of her wildcard performance: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYYCq2dEtMc
That also was eight years ago so maybe she's gotten better. She gave up on her dreams but now is making a comeback on AGT. She looks completely different now- I like that she ditched the afro. She is singing "Listen" from Dreamgirls (bonus points for no Whitney) and after watching that clip I think she sounds ten times better now than she did back then. It starts out great and then she shines on the big notes at the end. She does sound very much like Beyonce, but I think that's a good thing. She's one of my favorites so far this year. David says this is a lesson not to give up and it was a great job. Piers though know if she can win. What is it with Piers tonight? Did he wake up on on the wrong side of the bed? But surprisingly he says yes along with David and Sharon and she moves on to the next round.

Hey there's an Elphaba wannabe in the crowd!!!

Next up are the Badd Girls, a pop group not to be confused with the Spice Girls (whose music is of course playing in the background). They claim to have the whole package and are born to perform. Well the guys certainly will.... They want to be international pop stars as big as the Spice Girls. The dancing isn't bad but the singing is painful- it's more like shouting than anything. They are quickly X'd. Piers says they have as much chance to be as famous as the Spice Girls as he has to be US president (which of course is zero, since Piers is a foreigner). David and Sharon think they sounded like cats (I agree!!!). The three walk off before learning of their fates, but not surprisingly all three judges say no anyway. And also not surprisingly the Badd Girls still think they are talented.

After this we meet the Platt Brothers, who grew up in the countryside. They had no television, so they would hang out outside all the time growing up. Their parents have driven them to theater, dance, and gymnastics classes over the years, and the brothers hope to turn their passion into a career. For today's audition they stick with dancing. First they do a little synchronized electronic dancing that reminds me of Diversity from Britain's Got Talent. Then they act out a scene where one brother slams a (fake) door in the other brothers' faces, goes to the bathroom (I think), then throws a pretend cup at another brother, knocking him down. They finish with some more flips, including two of the brothers tumbling between each others legs while the third does a handstand. They are very energetic and good at what they do, though I don't know if they could sustain an hour show either. I kind of found myself getting bored halfway through. David loves their act and their hair. Piers says they have the tools plus the sex appeal, and now they just need to add more to it. Sharon likes the interpretation of the music. They also get three definite yes's, and seem up to Piers' challenge.

The final act/pimp act of the day is a group of Post Office workers who have been singing together for 10 years. Two of them happened to hear each other singing in the mail room one day and decided to join together. Now they have expanded to seven members, including a 21-year-old and a 76-year-old. They call themselves the Spiritual Harmonizers. They start singing, and they are basically an a capella group, as one soloist comes forward while the others do backing vocals. The soloist is pretty good, and the harmonies are even better, though I think Kelli should have been in the pimp spot instead of these guys. They are very good, but she is better. Piers says the lead singer is like a young Stevie Wonder (wow I didn't think he was that good), and that is what made the act not boring. Sharon loves the show because it gives everyday people like them to show their talent. David is proud of them. They of course get through to Vegas and start jumping for joy backstage.

So that's it for tonight's show. I was very impressed with the talent, especially Tallen, Tony, and Kelli Glover. Even Spiritual Harmonizers surprised me, though I still think they did not deserve to be in the pimp spot.

Thoughts on tonight's show? Did you love Kelli as much as I did? And who were your other standouts? Post your comments below.