After nine audition shows, two Las Vegas Week shows, eight Top 48 shows, 2 YouTube shows, and 2 Wild Card shows, we are finally down to the Top 24, otherwise known as the semi-finals. America put through 18 of these acts, while the judges personally put through six of them.

If the producers keep the format the same, there will be two sets of semi-finals performances, with twelve acts performing this week and another twelve performing next week. Five acts from each week will make it to the Top 10, four from America’s vote and one picked by the judges.

I will be blogging the performances live after the jump.

Prior to the opening credits, we get a quick rundown of the twelve acts that will be taking the stage tonight during part 1 of the semi-finals. I see a lot of acts that I like, so it may be difficult for me to decide who should go through. But that also means there should be a lot of good performances tonight. And that’s always a good thing.

Nick Cannon rambles on about something, but I was too busy typing to pay attention. He then asks Sharon Osbourne about just how tough it will be for the acts tonight. She has no clue how to respond. I wonder if she’s been hanging out with Paula Abdul.

First up tonight is Zuma Zuma. I really, really, really liked their Top 48 performance, and I’m hoping they bring it again tonight. There is fire on the stage and a stack of chairs haphazardly put together. These guys are insanely flexible, wrapping themselves around each other without a moment’s hesitation and forming all kinds of interesting shapes while balanced on one guy standing on the floor. I’ve found my first favorite act tonight.

Okay. Do what? Both Sharon and Howie Mandel think the act was slower and less energetic than last week. Geez. I hate the weeks where Piers Morgan is the one making sense.

Taking the stage now is Beth Ann Robinson. This 14-year-old is a good dancer, but I was surprised that the judges put her through with all the dance groups that have made it through this year. She starts out by dancing in front of a mirror at the back of the stage. In fact, there are three mirrors on stage, and she spends time dancing in front of them all. At other times, she dances at the right spot to be seen in all three mirrors. A very imaginative way to help fill up a stage. She an amazingly beautiful dancer, very much more mature for her age. I almost wish she wasn’t on the show this season, cause I think she’s going to get short-changed by all the dance groups.

Third act tonight is Sandou Trio Russian Bar. I had worried about whether I would be able to watch them tonight as some of their past stuff made my stomach queasy. But the bar, the same bar that is in their name, is gone. Instead, the female of the group is playing a piano that is suspended in midair, while one of the guys stands on it and another guy is on a trapeze. Piers presses his button. Wait a fricken’ minute……… the piano just rotated upside down, with her attached to the chair. Her singing was awful, and without the piano rotating, it would have been a total disaster. Piers and Howie rightly blasts the trio for what they did, while Sharon was a little more “sympathetic.” Frankly, they shouldn’t even bother showing up for the results show tomorrow.

Singer Kevin Colis is next to take the stage. I love Kevin’s voice. I’ve seen several of his videos, and he seems like a natural. He seemed comfortable on stage during his YouTube Week performance. This song isn’t working well at all. He is extremely off-key. Piers buzzes him about halfway through the song, appropriately so. Do Howie and Sharon even realize they have a buzzer they can use at this stage? Anyway, Kevin doesn’t recover. He ends the song the same way he started, off-key. I feel so bad for him, cause he is much better than this performance showed. Sorry, Kevin, but I just don’t see your looks getting you through to the Top 10.

Matt Wilhelm, the blacklight bicyclist, is up next. He says his story tonight is about being bullied as a kid. Matt is a little more visible on stage tonight than his YouTube Week performance, as are two back-up dancers. But it works. Some amazing tricks taking place on stage, both on the bike and off. Matt just fell off the bike, but I don’t think it really takes away from the rest of the performance. He ends by twirling around on one wheel. Amazing performance. I hope it gets him through, but tonight might be tough night.

We hit the halfway point with Poplyfe. They are an amazing band who I think could really make it one day. They are taking on The Beatles’ “Come Together” tonight, which could sink them if they are not careful. The band is on a set-up of two rows of three squares each, with each band member taking a square. It is a very ambitious remix of “Come Together.” Sharon and Howie give the young group a standing ovation, though I’m not sure that it was deserved. They are good, no doubt. But something was off with this performance. Almost like they weren’t synced together. I wouldn’t mind them going through, however. They are certainly good enough.

The West Springfield Dance Team takes the stage next. In their pre-performance video, they promise to take it a step up. Since I haven’t much cared for them the previous two times they performed, I can’t certainly see them going a step down. My biggest complaint from the past two weeks remains: they simply don’t seem to be in sync with each other. One part of the group seems to be giving it their all, while the other part seems to be halfway home already. This act just doesn’t work for me, and I’m ready to never have to write about them again.

Next up is impressionist Melissa Villasenor. Her audition was funny, but her Top 48 performance wasn’t good at all. She starts with a Sarah Silverman impression. The joke falls very flat with the audience. And with me. She moves on to Wanda Sykes driving a car. This one works better. Shakira is next, with the dance moves, or lack of them, included. Christina Aguilera singing the alphabet ends the performance. This one was actually quite funny. But it’s not going to be enough to save her. Maybe she can do an impression of a flight attendant on the way home.

The favorites going into the semi-finals, Team iLuminate, are next. They are using a new technology in their performance tonight. It’s a video game performance tonight, in the style of Mortal Kombat. There are some amazing stunts involved with this, showing just how versatile this act really is. All three judges, including the entire audience, gives them a standing ovation. Howie reminds the audience not to assume that an act is safe just because they did an amazing job, that you have to vote for them if you liked them. And he’s right. You have to vote. Or I will hunt you down and hit you with my throbbing forehead vein.

The act I’ve been fearing all night, Daniel Joseph Baker, takes the stage. The problem I had with him on his Top 48 performance was that he felt fake to me. He comes across as trying to be someone he’s not. And he does nothing to convince me otherwise, tonight. Playing the piano while dressed up in an all-white puffy get-up, he tries to sing with a scowl on his face. He’s a good piano player. He’s a bad scowling singer. Oh great. He’s wearing Lady Gag Gag boots. Please, America, for the sake of my sanity, don’t vote for him tonight. Geez, a standing ovation from Sharon and Howie? Really? Oh great. Piers even liked it. I give up.

Miami All Stars dance their way on stage next. They made it to the semi-finals thanks to the judges. In the pre-performance video, we see one of the dancers break through the plexi-glass on the floor. That’s how intense this routine will be. They are dressed like they are from the Copacabana, with all the pastel colors you would expect. It’s a highly energetic routine that just fills the stage with limbs and legs going all over the place. It’s amazing. It is the second best act of the night so far. Great job.

And I agree with Sharon: Please, America, vote for them. Vote, vote, vote.

Lys Agnes is the final act of the night. This opera singer has an amazing voice, one that almost makes me willing to forget that I hate opera. In her pre-performance video, we see that she lost her voice and was put on voice rest. It appears that she has recovered very nicely. She has a very small problem as she sings into her upper register, but I’m willing to bet that most people won’t notice it. The judges give yet another standing ovation, and rightfully so. Amazing performance. Amazing vocal range. Amazing stage presence. I’m loving it.

My picks to go through tonight are Lys Agnes, Miami All Stars, Team iLuminate, Matt Wilhelm, and Zuma Zuma. I would not be disappointed if Beth Ann Robinson goes through, though I can’t figure out which act could be left out to make room for her.

What did you think about tonight’s America’s Got Talent? Do you agree with my picks? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.

And don’t forget to join me and Rickey, from Rickey.org, tomorrow (Wednesday) night at 11 PM ET / 10 PM CT for the Idol Radio Show as we discuss tonight’s performances, tomorrow’s results show, and other entertainment news.