A dance crew managed to crack the code for moving on while appearing on “America’s Got Talent.”
Unreal, a dance team of seven individuals from India, formed in 2018 and practiced for “America’s Got Talent” for five years. All that practice paid off because their act earned the Golden Buzzer following a memorably creepy performance on the July 29 episode of the NBC show.
The group, accompanied by an interpreter, wore white suits splotched with black designs, while their faces were partially painted like skeletons.
They danced and contorted their own bodies in sync to scary music that featured cracking sounds, so it sounded as if their bones and other body parts were cracking. There were other moments where it appeared as if their heads were being turned 180 degrees, legs and arms were being snapped and bodies were being cut up. Oh, and they also danced in total precision, adding a dash of choreography to the spooky performance. By the end, the crowd and judges were on their feet.
“One of the most amazing things I’ve ever seen,” host Terry Crews said backstage.
The judges backed up that assessment.
Unreal performs on “America’s Got Talent.”Trae Patton / NBC
“Slightly speechless, if I’m being honest with you,” Simon Cowell said. “I just thought it was so creative, brilliant, scary. And I can tell how much work you must have put into this, because this doesn’t happen overnight.”
“Perfect audition,” Sofia Vergara raved. “Your personalities, the effort you put into your clothing. The moves are incredible. I’ve never seen anything like it. It was one of the best shows we’ve seen this season, definitely.”
It was Howie Mandel, though, who took his feedback to the next level.
Unreal’s performance was, well, unreal.Trae Patton / NBC
“We see dance crews. We see contortions, 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,” he said.
Mandel then stood up and slammed his hand on the Golden Buzzer, enabling Unreal to advance to the live shows.
“You deserve to be taken all the way,” he shouted as he hit the button, sending the troupe and the audience into a frenzy, while confetti rained down from the ceiling onto the stage.
Unreal put on a show that won over the judges and the audience.Trae Patton / NBC
“I’ve never seen anything like this,” he said while onstage with the crew. “You guys are probably the most creative people I’ve ever seen in my life.”
“My favorite act of Season 20,” he continued before taking a picture with the group. “I would buy tickets. I would see you. I think you’re going to take this all the way.”