Jade Simone is back for another appearance on America’s Got Talent.
The showgirl and assistant to Piff the Magic Dragon is a self-described comedian, MC, host, professional dancer, and actress, according to her Instagram.
According to Las Vegas Weekly, Jade has always dreamed of being a Rockette. The outlet writes, “She would practice her kicks every day, preparing for the inevitable moment where she, too, would become a Rockette.”
As the assistant to Piff the Magic Dragon, Jade is in charge of many crucial aspects of his show, from performing the “Chihuahua Cannonball Catch” to the “Trampoline of Happiness”.
In the words of CY Interview, Jade is “a great dancer and is the kind of sidekick you would imagine a talking magic dragon to have, if you could imagine such a thing.”
Her Instagram shows her in her showgirl outfit, often posing with Piff. According to IMDB, Jade has appeared as herself on Who Wants to be a Millionaire as Jade the Showgirl and WGN Morning News.
And what do we know about Piff? Piff’s real name is John van der Put; he has won a number of awards and even toured as a supporting act for Mumford and Sons. He’s appeared on shows like Fool Us, as well as America’s Got Talent.
In an interview with Long Island Pulse, Van Der Put was asked how he got involved in magic. He responed, “When I was a kid, I would do it as a hobby. Then I sort of never really wanted a job—I was always too lazy to get a job. I ended up trying to do magic for a living. And over the years, that turned into my full-time job.”
Asked how he came up with the idea for the dragon outfit, he said, “I went to a party—it was a costume party—as a dragon because my sister had a dragon outfit under her bed. I don’t know why she did, but she did…Nobody else was in costume. I was looking very upset at this party, in this dragon outfit, and my friend said, “Hey, you should do this in your act! You can be Puff the Magic Dragon!” And I said, “Wait, I can be Piff the Magic Dragon, you might have heard of my older brother.” Before I was just a grumpy guy. But apparently, a grumpy dragon is hilarious. Everyone who was firing me for being too grumpy suddenly started hiring me and my career took off.”
This season, Jade is helping Piff out on America’s Got Talent. The spinoff premiered in early January, and has been described as The Olympics of Talent, featuring winners, finalists, and other stars from previous seasons of AGT.
Some of those people include Susan Boyle, Preacher Lawson, Darci Lynn Farmer, Ashley and Sully, Viktor Kee, Courtney Hadwin, Light Balance, and Taylor Williamson, among others.
Be sure to tune into AGT, every Monday at 8pm ET/PT on NBC.