As the guys said, they are “twin it, to win it.”
There’s a full-throttle, all-jazz-hands-on-deck vibe to “Mirror Image,” the act Murrysville twins Colton and Trent Edwards brought to the live quarterfinals round of NBC’s “America’s Got Talent” Tuesday night. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea — the Reddit boards seem fairly obsessed with the rising juniors from Franklin Regional High School — but Mirror Image certainly charmed judges Mel B and Heidi Klum.
“You are thoroughly, thoroughly, thoroughly entertaining,” Mel B said.
The Edwards twins threw in a bit of everything in a routine that began with vocals to Queen’s “Somebody to Love,” and morphed into a hip-hop-inspired contemporary dance to Bell Biv DeVoe’s “That Girl is Poison.”
Dressed in red sweatsuits with white and navy colorblocking, they were joined by backup dancers for the first time since the taped audition and judges’ cuts shows. They threw backflips and a few other gymnastics into the mix, too.
In a taped bit that ran before the live performance, Gia Edwards, the twins’ mother, joked that her 16-year-old sons were not going to sway Mr. Cowell, “but they’re going to try.”
As the act ended, it took judge Simon Cowell all of about a second to slam his hand down on a buzzer, signaling his disapproval.
“I think you just proved their mama right,” noted AGT host, Tyra Banks.
“I don’t know what this act is,” Mr. Cowell said, defending his action.
Among Mirror Image’s competition for votes was a family dog act, a 9-year-old vocalist, the Masqueraders (a senior R&B trio) and a bunch of college friends in a dance crew.
Seven acts advance to next week’s live semifinals round in Los Angeles, based on viewer votes until 7 a.m. EST Wednesday. Voting is limited to 10 votes per person, through the AGT app, social media, online and phone line.
The live results show begins Wednesday at 8 p.m.
Overall, it was a strange evening on “America’s Got Talent.” Midway, an act called Light Balance could not go on due to technical difficulties and NBC broadcast its dress rehearsal video. Later, “death-defying” illusionist Demian Aditya was supposed to escape from a wooden box that was suspended over flaming stakes.
Something went wrong, leading Mr. Aditya to suddenly walk up behind the judges with a fire extinguisher. All buildup, no payoff, Mr. Cowell said disapprovingly. He then compared that to what must have been Mel B’s wedding night, prompting her to storm off.
Cue the Pompeo Family dogs, adorable pups dressed like wild African animals and dancing to Katy Perry’s “Roar.”
“The dogs just saved ‘America’s Got Talent’ tonight,” Mr. Cowell said.
And yes, Mel B returned in time to watch: “Thankfully, you came along and made me smile so much,” she told the Pompeos.
Maria Sciullo: msciullo@post-gazette.com or @MariaSciulloPG.
First Published: August 23, 2017, 1:12 a.m.