EDOARDO COSTA

Italian actor, entrepreneur and former model. His career began in the fashion industry as a model in the early 1990s for the modeling agency Why Not. Desiring something more, he began studying acting in Paris and Milan as well as in Los Angeles at The Actors Studio. He soon made television appearances on various American television series including Baywatch, Arliss, The Bold and the Beautiful.

Costa also made a variety of independent American films leading to his debut in a first major feature as the terrorist Emerson, in the final installment of the Die Hard series, Live Free or Die Hard, with Bruce Willis, Timothy Olyphant, Justin Long, and Mary Elizabeth Winstead. His first major role in an American film was in the soon to be released drama Kiddie Ride, directed by Harold Guskin and starring James Gandolfini and Famke Janssen.

Costa continues to work in both the United States and Italy. He has made forays into theater in the plays, Bread Love Fantasy and Very Old Man, alongside Italian acting legend Marcello Mastroianni (Federico Fellini’s La Dolce Vita) and worked on numerous Italian soap operas, television series, films and reality shows.

Costa was born in Varese, northern Italy, the son of a Rosangela, who worked at the local electric company and Pietro Cicorini, a transport business owner. Costa is the eldest of two children, he and his sister Monica. Costa attended Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore where he studied philosophy. He served his military service as a Carabinieri in the mid 1980s. It was during this that he was discovered in a local Milanese restaurant bar by a modeling scout.

Costa’s modeling has seen him work in Paris, Moscow, Los Angeles and Tokyo. He has appeared in print and television commercials for brands including Giorgio Armani, Laura Biagiotti, Versace, Tissot, Cerutti, Diet Coke and Toyota. In 1999, he began his acting career with a part in a popular Italian television series, going on to appear in further television programs and several Italian films.

In 2007 Costa took control of Beatrice International Models, an agency with forty years experience in the fashion industry on a par with Ford Models, Elite and Next. Former models include Iman and Stephanie Seymour. The venture catapulted Costa into the international spotlight. The modeling agency also recently began a formal dialogue with The National Eating Disorders Association and its CEO, Dr. Lynne Grefe. Beatrice International Models will be the first international modeling agency that will work together with the association to spread awareness and positive prevention about the diseases that have plagued the industry for decades.

In 2007, Costa also opened The Actor’s Academy Milano. Inspired by his experience at The Actor’s Studio, Costa began one of the first schools in Europe to exclusively recruit Lifetime Members of the Actor’s Studio as well as teachers from the Stella Adler Studio of Acting, the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute, all of whom specialized in method acting using the system created by Constatin Stanislavski. The Actor’s Academy Milano hosted acclaimed actors such as Academy Award winner Martin Landau and Oscar nominated actor Mickey Rourke. The Actor’s Academy Milano has asked Gary Swanson to play a pivotal role in its development. Swanson was one of the first teachers to start “Inside the Actor’s Studio” hosted by James Lipton. Swanson was among the few personally chosen by the executive committee that includes the late Paul Newman, Ellen Burstyn, and Arthur Penn.

Costa began charitable work in the mid 1990s while still a model. Through a friendship with Quincy Jones, Costa has used his celebrity to support projects in Afghanistan, Brazil and Africa. Costa states that it was Nelson Mandela who encouraged him to become more actively involved in philanthropic work.

Masood Ali Khan Bio

Masood Ali Khan has a unique musical performance and voice that inspires a meditative experience with his mesmerizing combination of the ‘Hang’ (drum), hand pans and sacred mantras. Masood’s soul spirit songs are infused with the power of the heart and mind to help humanity.

Masood was born in London into Indian/Muslim heritage and is a musician of eclectic qualities. He has been practicing yoga for over 25 years, and embodies an innate spiritual desire to continue his soul mission to help humanity with every talent possible.

Masood studied and practiced Acupuncture and homeopathy and received his PhD at the Open International University of Complementary Medicine in Colombo, Sri Lanka where he was also was head of the faculty for Universal Energy from his Universal Energy teacher ‘Master Luong Minh Dang.

Masood is a Foundation Training Student Instructor trained by Dr Eric Goodman. “Through a series of postures, poses, and movements, Foundation Training activates your posterior muscle chain, anchors the hips, decompresses the spine, and teaches you to take the burden of supporting the body out of your joints and put it where it belongs: in your muscles.” Dr Eric Goodman

Masood also is a Certified Teacher for the Heather Lyle Vocal Yoga Method® Incorporating vocal exercises and postures to strength to the sounding vessel ( the whole body) . Great for beginners to overcome their fear of singing and their first steps to singing.

LAUREN LUGO

An Opera singer that hails from Orange County, California. Back in 2017, Lauren solo traveled to Rome Italy where she was inspired by the pace of lifestyle and opportunity that the Eternal City offered. It was then, that the singer vowed to return a year later. She became an American expat and student in the Summer of 2018, in the pursuit to continue studying, performing Music and complete her Bachelor’s Degree in Communications with an emphasis in Journalism in Broadcast Media and Television.  

In March of 2020, Lauren was encouraged to evacuate and return to the States due to COVID 19’s impact on Italy.  On the eve of her departure to return to California, a heartfelt home video of Lauren singing an Italian aria on her balcony was viewed by millions that day.  Perhaps, it was the intention of her paying homage to a city that has gifted her with many blessings of life and lessons these past two years.

Today, Lauren hopes to continue her love of music, philanthropy and writing.  For she truly feels the purpose of her voice is to spread awareness through the therapy of music and hopes others can feel inspired. The philosophy of Lauren is that through hardship, music can truly be transformative and it is the greatest gift that keeps on giving to one another.

LIFE CHANGES and VORTEX IMMERSION

Durning the Coronavirus times, there have been more positives than one can count, and each has been special and important to one person, to many, to millions. Though arguably, positive things are happening all the time, all over the world, being that the recent focus has been on so many of the obvious and maybe not so obvious negatives, a spotlight on some of the highlights that have come to our attention at LIFE CHANGES and have been brought forward by the Vortex Immersion Team, is our show tonight.

It is our trust that they will inspire, and support our faith in individuals and humanity not only in this crisis, but potentially from here on forward. May we never forget the kindness of others we are experiencing at this time and always, and pass it on, and share it in our stories for generations to come.

LIFE CHANGES

When it comes to changes, LIFE CHANGES is setting new trends and ushering in a new paradigm, featuring conversations with experts who have either changed their lives, changed the lives of others, or are changing the world in their own little or big way.  From activist celebrities to people who have achieved extraordinary things; from spiritual leaders, futurists,  to book smart, degreed and/or doctored scientists, physicians, and scholars, hear what they have to say and be part of a conversation that matters on ways to become the new “cool,” be in the know, in the now, and flow with life’s changes.

JESSICA BAUM, LMHC

Jessica Baum, LMHC is the founder of Relationship Institute of Palm Beach and creator of the Self-Full® method — a therapeutic path to personal wellness and freedom from codependence. Jessica holds an undergraduate degree from Fordham University and a master’s degree in mental health counseling from South University.

As a certified addiction specialist, her focuses are chemical abuse, codependency, and anxiety. She is also a certified Imago Therapist, bringing her compassionate and effective relationship counseling experience to families, couples, and family programs within addiction treatment centers. Jessica has extensive training in psychodrama and experiential therapy, and is additionally skilled in cognitive and dialectical behavior therapy. Her training also includes EMDR and Post Induction Therapy, and she has a wealth of experience supporting trauma patients.

Jessica’s own personal core belief is centered around the importance of connection, both to oneself and the outside world. She believes the crux of most personal struggles can be attributed to a lack of true understanding and personal connection, and that it is this sense of disconnection that ultimately leads to pain. Jessica founded the Relationship Institute of Palm Beach to help heal, foster happine