MEAWW.COM / ENTERTAINMENT / REALITY TV

Albanian brothers take classic circus stunt to new heights by balancing on human head in wild ‘AGT’ act

While Simon Cowell had his reservations, Balla Brothers received a standing ovation for their jaw-dropping performance

In 'America's Got Talent', Season 17 brothers Arnold and Arton, known as the Balla Brothers, took the classic rolla bolla act to the next level, leaving Heidi Klum and Sofia Vergara visibly shocked and impressed. Simon Cowell, however, remained skeptical. The act began with Arnold tossing Arton into the air for a backflip, which he landed on his feet to loud cheers from the audience. Arnold then lay face down on the stage as Arton set up a rolla bolla on his back. “Look at that! He’s doing it on his back,” Heidi exclaimed as Arton climbed on and balanced with his arms out, holding three tennis balls. As Arnold slowly pushed himself up, with Arton still balancing, the tension in the room grew. Sofia gasped, “No!” while host Terry Crews looked on in disbelief.

For their next stunt, Arnold wore a black head protector, placing the plank and roller directly on his head. With a roller handed to him by host Terry Crews, Arton began to balance on top of it. While Arnold’s body shook from the strain, the brothers held their nerve, making Klum scream, "That is crazy!" as Cowell interupted her with an anxious chuckle. The brothers received a standing ovation from Vergara and Klum, while Cowell sat laughing, visibly relieved that the brothers did not hurt themselves during the act, before he, too, stood up to applaud the act. 

The audience's reaction said it all; the brothers from Albania had earned a spot in 'AGT' history. “You just reinvented the wheel, because rolla bolla on top of a person, I have never seen before,” Klum said. “I mean, I am in shock,” Vergara added, “I saw that thing, and I saw it there. It looks so silly. It’s like, what are they gonna do with that little tube? I mean, that was amazing, it had everything, I mean, I could watch you guys for a long, long time.” 

Cowell, while impressed with the brothers, had some reservations. “As Heidi said, you know it's always good to see something that we have never seen before. I don't know when you decided one day that's what I am going to do, which is to put that on your head,” he said. However, in the typical Cowell style, he did not hesitate to point out what he did not like about the brothers' act. "The only thing I didn't like was the oranges or tangerines, or whatever they were," he said, referring to the tennis balls. "Why did you not like it?" Vergara asked, to which Cowell replied, "Because it was unnecessary," inviting immediate jeers from the audience. 

The Balla Brothers earned a “yes” from all the judges on the panel, advancing into the next round. They were, however, eliminated from ‘AGT’ Season 17 during the Deliberations round. But the setback did not stop them from earning a spot in the Guinness World Records. The two acrobats set two records: the longest duration balancing blindfolded on a rolla bolla set on a person's head at 61.95 seconds, and the most consecutive push-ups supporting a person on a balance board with a total of 11. “The secret of this one is two minds have to be in one in order for you to be successful," Arnold told Guinness.