Americas Got Talent 10 Semi Finals - Semi Final Two Preview: The Professional Regurgitator and Piff the Magic Dragon

(For British Viewers, This Article May Contain Spoilers)

Last Week, both Derek Hughes and Oz Pearlman made it into the Americas Got Talent Grand Final, due to be held next week. Tonight, The Professional Regurgitator and Comedic Magician Piff the Magic Dragon will be among the eleven acts competing for the remaining five places in the Grand Final.

What Should The Professional Regurgitator Do?

For the most part, the problems with The Professional Regurgitator are less to do with his level of skill than the very nature of his act. His ability to swallow and regurgitate a wide variety of objects is impressive and unique, but it is not pleasant to watch. Like sword swallowing and other sideshow acts, regurgitation is great for those who enjoy it, but makes many viewers feel uncomfortable.  I appreciate The Professional Regurgitator's talent, but, due to the disgusting nature of his act, I don't think he'll win the million dollar prize, in spite of the support he has received from the judges, especially Howard and Heidi, That said, the Professional Regurgitator is good at making his unusual skill into an act. He has a strong sense of showmanship, and is good at making all his performances differ from each other, even when repeating ideas (In both his Audition and his Judges Cuts performance, The Professional Regurgitator swallowed coins and regurgitated them in an order specified by the judges, but both performances were distinct enough for the second to not feel like a copy). Even if he doesn't win the competition, The Professional Regurgitator has succeeded in his goal of gaining a wider fanbase.

What Should Piff the Magic Dragon Do?

Going into the Live Shows, Piff the Magic Dragon was the magic act to beat. He was funny, had a wonderfully unique approach, but best of all, his card tricks were creative and impressive. However, he dropped the ball during his Live Show performance. Whilst he still provided some amusing quips, the trick he performed was yet another variation on the Smash And Stab routine, but with the life of his dog Mr Piffles placed on the line instead of his own. Smash And Stab-type tricks are so common on AGT that they no longer seem impressive, and using Mr. Piffles in such a fashion probably made a lot of dog-loving viewers feel very uncomfortable. Furthermore, there is a risk that Piff is beginning to lose the novelty value that made his first two performances stand out. This is made apparent by the fact that his signature running gag, in which he eats increasingly elaborate  meals during the Judges comments, has ran its course - it will be very hard for Piff to take it further without making it seem too ridiculous. Therefore, Piff needs to place further emphasis on his skills as a magician. Numerous magicians on AGT have been able to get far due to their showmanship rather than their tricks, but when viewers get tired of the presentation, the magic needs to be made even better in order to maintain their support.

What Is The Competition Like?

The other nine acts competing tonight are:

• 3 Shades of Blue (Rock Band)
• Alicia Michilli (Jazz/ Soul Singer) 
• Alondra Santos (Mariachi / Latin Singer)
• Daniella Mass (Opera/ Classical Singer)
• Freelusion Dance Company (Videomapping Dance Duo)  
• Gary Vider (Stand-Up Comedian)
• Paul Zerdin (Ventriloquist) 
• Sharon Irving (Gospel/ Soul Singer) 
• Uzeyer Novruzov (Ladder Acrobat) 

Predictions

I think that the Professional Regurgitator is Almost Guaranteed to make it to the Grand Final. In spite of my doubts about his chances of winning, The Professional Regurgitator is a very unique act who is receiving plenty of support from viewers. In contrast, Piff the Magic Dragon's chances of getting through depend on how well his Semifinal performance goes. If it's a success, he will be seen as a major competitor again. However, if his performance is another disappointment, Piff will become the only magician this year not to make the Grand Final. For now, his chances of making it through are Moderate.


A Word On The Illusionists

During Last Week's results show, The Illusionists, a magic collective who also appeared on AGT last year, provided several impressive magic tricks. Only "The Anti-Conjurer" (and former AGT Semifinallist) Dan Sperry returned from the line-up that performed last year, but he was joined by a host of familiar faces:

• "The Unusualist", Raymond Crowe. A finalist on Australia's Got Talent in 2013, Raymond Crowe is more of a variety act than a magician, although he has performed magic on several occasions. This time, he did one of his signature routines, in which he used Hand Shadows to depict a wide variety of people and animals. I doubt I can call it magic, but it was an entertaining routine, and if Raymond competed in the competition proper, he would probably do very well.
• "The Deceptionist", James More. For his appearance as an AGT guest, former Britain's Got Talent Semifinallist James More performed the Impaled illusion, which he had used in his audition for BGT. The trick itself was nothing spectacular (although its nice to see a male magician getting "Impaled" instead of an assistant), but I loved the staging, which featured acrobats, lots of fire, and a live backing band. James' performance provided a great example of how to make a relatively conventional illusion stand out on the Radio City stage.
• "The Daredevil", Jonathan Goodwin. Having just seen Jonathan perform in London (As part of the magic show Impossible), I was very surprised, but also pleased, to see Jonathan on AGT. He performed a version of a spectacular and dangerous escapology routine he had performed in Impossible . For this performance, Jonathan escaped from a straitjacket whilst hanging upside down, with his lower half on fire. Jonathan's version of the escape was different from the version he performed in Impossible, with most of the changes being made to fit the performance into a shorter timeslot. When he performed in Impossible, Jonathan had a thirty-second head start before his clothing caught fire, but this time, his escape begun when his assistant set him alight. Jonathan managed to get out of the straitjacket and reach a nearby fire extinguisher within about twenty seconds, demonstrating that in addition to being an excellent showman, Jonathan is a very skilled escapologist. 

Dan Sperry did not perform on stage, but did a smaller routine backstage for judges Howard and Mel B. He wrote down a predicted phobia on a sheet of paper, folded it up, and told Mel B to deposit the prediction in a small black box. He then got took out a set of "Flashcards", each one with a different phobia written on them, He told Mel B to choose a phobia, and she chose "Rats". Mel B was then instructed to open the box and take out the prediction, but instead of the prediction, a giant rat had appeared inside the box. This was a very simple routine, but it suited Dan's persona very well, and in any case, it was better than the performances he provided when he competed on AGT in 2010.