Israeli dancing dog act advances to finals on TV program 'America’s Got Talent'

A dog trainer from Tel Aviv and her Border Collie impressed both the judges and the audience in the “America’s Got Talent” (AGT) competition earlier this year.

Since then, Roni Sagi and her dancing dog Rhythm have captured many hearts and received a standing ovation and advanced to the finals with their performance to the popular song, “What a Feeling,” from the iconic movie “Flashdance.”

Sagi, who spoke to Channel 12 News on Saturday, said she wore a yellow ribbon in solidarity with the remaining Israeli hostages who are being held by Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip after 11 months of war.

“So proud of you for dedicating this performance to the hostages, our brothers and sisters who were taken brutally from their home,” said Sagi’s sister, Sol, in a video post of the dancing dog performance.

AGT judge Heidi Klum described the act as a “winning performance,” calling it “spectacular.” Klum also praised Sagi’s patience in training Rhythm.

Veteran judge and show creator Simon Cowell praised the Israeli dancing act, saying it was worthy of earning a 10 out of 10 score if it were in the Olympics.

“That was better than anything I’ve seen before,” said Cowell, who is known for his sometimes brutal honesty in criticizing less impressive acts.

An overjoyed Sagi wants her interaction with Rhythm to serve as a source of inspiration for individuals from different cultural and linguistic backgrounds.

“I think it’s about being able to show that you can speak two different languages and still connect, and I hope this is the message that people will take, not just for this kind of show, but for living in general,” she said.

“Couldn’t be more proud of my best friend who showed how beautiful the relationship between dogs and humans can be. Watching him so happy as we do our thing on the biggest stage in the world made me the happiest person in the world, and to know that all the people at home could see his joy and feel it along with us is the most incredible feeling,” Sagi stated after advancing to the final competition.

In June, Sagi’s act with Rhythm went viral when a video from the competition became one of the top 10 videos trending online.

“When you said your dog can dance, he actually dances better than human dancers we’ve had on,” Cowell said at the time.

Many years of hard training went into the well-choreographed act that lasted just a few minutes.

Sagi danced for nine full years before she decided to switch to 'dog dancing.' Since then, she has become increasingly popular in Israel. In 2021, she appeared with her other dog, Pesach, on the KAN public broadcasting network during an international competition in the Czech Republic.

Sagi and Rhythm are scheduled to perform in the AGT finals on Tuesday night.