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Simon Cowell Gives Golden Buzzer to Injured Aerialists: "The Definition of Courage"
Tragedy struck Sebastian and Sonia ahead of the Live Quarterfinals, but they didn't give up and walked away with a Golden Buzzer.
Like every episode of America’s Got Talent, the latest round saw magicians, singers, dancers, and many more take the stage. However, the final Live Golden Buzzer of the Season 19 Quarterfinals went to not just an immensely talented Act, but an immensely courageous one, according to Simon Cowell.
Sebastian and Sonia stunned the crowd with their seemingly impossible aerialist moves during their Audition. They easily advanced to the next round where they hoped to once again show the world what they could do. However, tragedy struck and they had merely three days to pivot their entire Act into something worthy of a Golden Buzzer.
What happened to Sonia?
With any AGT Act, there’s a lot of behind-the-scenes rehearsal that goes into it. If you’ve got an Act as dangerous as Sebastian and Sonia’s, anything can happen during one of those rehearsals. While practicing on the AGT stage, Sonia fell and fractured her elbow. The injury required her to be in a brace for the immediate future, which meant she could not perform their complex aerialist Act on Tuesday night.
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While that may have been the point where post performers threw in the towel, these two knew they had to keep trying “to fight for our dreams and keep things alive,” as Sebastian explained.
Although he was distraught at her being injured, he took the next three days and cooked up a solo Act they hoped would keep them in the competition until she recovered and they could once again show the world what they're capable of at max capacity.
Sebastian’s Solo Act on AGT
Although he didn’t have much time to prepare and he typically works in tandem with Sonia, a determined Sebastian created a beautiful and athletic showcase of his skills set to Shawn Mendes’ “In My Blood.” The crowd was dazzled as he used ropes to fling himself high above the stage and perform a series of flips and tricks that one simply has to see to believe. He capped the performance off with a beautiful spin supporting his entire weight with his arms dangerously high above the stage.
Perhaps the most heartwarming part of the whole performance was the handful of times the cameras cut backstage to Sonia watching the Act with Terry Crews. While the host was vibing out to the music, Sonia’s eyes were glued to the screen as she soaked in every moment and maneuver Sebastian did with the sole purpose of keeping their collective dream alive.
The gravity of the moment and the beauty of the performance were neither lost on the crowd nor the Judges, particularly Cowell.
Why did Simon Cowell Give Sebastian and Sonia a Golden Buzzer?
In short, Cowell felt that what Sebastian had created to perform on the stage was not only an example of immeasurable talent but courage as well.
“A lot of people would have given up. How do you do this Act with two people with one person and then make it incredible?” he explained. “Honestly, I think most people would have just said ‘You know what, we’ve had an accident and therefore we can’t continue.’ But you did the opposite. You continued. Not only that, I’m not just saying this, not just because of that, this was by far the best reaction we’ve had so far, which is why you are getting…”
With that, and the backing of thunderous applause from the crowd, Simon hit the Golden Buzzer and sent Sebastian and Sonia through to the Finals where, hopefully, she’ll be healed up and ready to compete.
“That is the definition of courage,” Cowell concluded. “You don’t give up. Seriously.”
With that, the tearful aerialist duo’s chances are kept alive for yet another round all thanks to their courage, faith in each other, and some pretty impressive talent.
Catch up on past episodes of America’s Got Talent on Peacock.
