An Oak Creek native who once served as her high school's class president is now trading student council meetings for a spot on national television, dancing under laser beams and programmable LED suits in the America's Got Talent live finale. Cindy Reid-Bluhm, a founding member of the group Royal Lasers, is set to perform in the two-part finale airing Tuesday and Wednesday at 8 p.m. on NBC.
Royal Lasers pairs choreographed dance with programmable LED suits and laser lighting, an act that earned the group a Golden Buzzer during its America's Got Talent audition, according to TMJ4 News. Reid-Bluhm said the group wanted to incorporate technology and dancing together, and remarkably, the audition marked the first time the trio had ever danced together as a full group. That leap of faith paid off immediately, launching them straight into the competition.
Reid-Bluhm founded Royal Lasers with her husband, Josh, and their friend Nick, after the three met while working together on the AGT Superstars Live residency in Las Vegas. Cindy and Josh worked as backup dancers on that residency, while Nick served as their choreographer. The Las Vegas connection runs deeper than a shared job: per the same TMJ4 report and corroborated by the outlet's telling, the trio's chemistry from that gig became the foundation for the act now competing on national television.
From Luxor Stages to the AGT Spotlight
The group's Las Vegas roots were also detailed by the Las Vegas Review-Journal, which reported that Joshua Blum, Cindy Reid Bluhm and Nikita Shevchenko were backing dancers in “America's Got Talent Live!” at Luxor before forming Royal Lasers. The outlet noted the team advanced into the live shows on a Golden Buzzer pass from host Terry Crews, and that Las Vegas performers were prominent among the acts moving forward in the competition's 21st season.
Back home, Reid-Bluhm's rise has stirred pride among people who knew her before the lasers and LED suits. She grew up in Oak Creek and graduated from Oak Creek High School, where she served on student council and was class president, the station reported. Since Royal Lasers' AGT audition aired, she has had friends and former teachers reach out to her, reconnecting over a moment they never expected to see on national television.
A Dance Studio That Shaped Her Path
Long before the Golden Buzzer, Reid-Bluhm trained at Young Dance Academy in Oak Creek, where she said she wanted dance to be part of her life from a young age. She said the academy taught her a lesson she has carried into the competition: if you want something, you have to work for it. That ethic now applies under real pressure, as Royal Lasers reportedly has only days to prepare a finale act that would normally take weeks.
Sandy Young, who founded and owns Young Dance Academy, taught Reid-Bluhm and described her as family. Jenna Engen, who also teaches at the studio, described Reid-Bluhm as like a sister and said her journey can inspire current students watching from the same Oak Creek classrooms where she once trained.
Reid-Bluhm said the city of Oak Creek may be cheering on Royal Lasers as the group heads into the finale. Royal Lasers competes in the two-part America's Got Talent live finale Tuesday and Wednesday at 8 p.m. on NBC, with viewers able to vote for the group at agt.vote.nbc.com.
