After a three-week hiatus, America’s Got Talent has returned for Judgment Week. Only 48 acts will progress through to live performances at Radio City Music Hall, and the performers are on the edge of their seats waiting to see who the judges will pick.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. The Show Was Relocated From Vegas to NYC
(Youtube)
Judgment Week marks the second round of auditions. It started Tuesday night and will continue Wednesday night. For the first time, competitors showcased their talents for Judgment Week in NYC instead of Vegas. Despite the location change, the format of the auditions has stayed the same.
2. Pyscho Jack Was Eliminated
On Tuesday night, we found out one act that definitely would not be progressing to the live performances at Radio City. Psycho Jack had a slight technical difficulty with his magic act that got him sent home. The judges asked Nick Cannon to grab the performer so they could deliver him the bad news in person.
3. John & Andrew and Mara Justine Make It Through To the Next Round
They may be a salsa dancing couple, but they aren’t together. On their pre-performance interview, the guys make it clear that while Andrew is gay, John isn’t. More important, though, is the fact that John and Andrew did such a great job performing on Tuesday night’s episode that the judges called them in to tell them they were definitely going through to the next round of live performances.
Mara Justine, who was grouped with the kid singers, also had the vocal chops to make it though to Radio City. The 11-year-old sang a pitch-perfect Whitney Houston song and performed well enough for the judges to call her back on stage and give her the good news.
4. America Will Choose the 48th and Final Contestant
The judges will send 47 contestants through to live shows, but America has to decide who that last contestant will be.
Performers around the U.S. who didn’t make it to first-round auditions were asked to submit a video of their performance to the Today Show. Three acts were chosen to perform on the Today Show Wednesday, and the performer who receives the most votes will be put through to the live rounds.
The winners, and 48th contestants on America’s Got Talent this summer, will be announced on July 30 by Matt Lauer and Savannah Guthrie.
The first act, called Domino Effects, was a group of middle and high school students who created tricks that mimicked life-size dominoes. The second act, Power House Tumblers, is a tumbling group from Wilmington, North Carolina. And Cornell Bhangra is a group of Cornell University students who have already won dance championships for their Bhangra skills.
You can vote for your favorite act here.
5. Some Acts Skipped Judgment Week
The following acts were so good that the judges surprised them in their hometowns to tell them they would be skipping Boot Camp and heading to NYC for the live shows. Those acts were:
-Blue Journey
-Dom the Bomb’s Triple Threat
-Jonatan
-David and Leeman
-Hart Dance Team
-Dan Naturman
-Acte II
-Emil and Dariel
The next live shows at Radio City Music Hall will begin July 29 at 9 pm ET.