CORY PESATURO

Cory Pesaturo (“C Pez”) is a graduate of the prestigious New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, MA, where he was the first in decades to major and graduate in the accordion.  Pesaturo tied the record for the youngest National Champion at 15, and later became the only person to win World Championships in Digital Accordion, Acoustic Accordion, and additionally Jazz Accordion.  The most famous accordion Legend in US history, Dick Contino, said when Cory was only 15, “Of all the accordionists I’ve seen over the years, Cory is the one to pass the torch to, the only one who has all the tools to bring the accordion back to its former glory.”  Pesaturo’s main contribution, is his work to revolutionize how the accordion should be used, played, and presented in modern music.  In 2014, Pesaturo gave a TED Talk on this quest for the instrument, the first Talk of its kind.  He has developed his own electric accordion, and has made the first ever skinned accordion that includes a symmetric midi lighting system attached to the keys.  In 2016 Facebook granted Cory “Verified” status, given to people who are well known and influential in their field.

Fittingly, Cory’s first major performance was sitting in for an ill Myron Floren at age 11 when the Lawrence Welk tour came to his home state of Rhode island, as the famed TV show is considered one of the instruments main reasons for its image collapse.  Pesaturo’s extensive résumé now includes performances with Wynton Marsalis, Johnny Depp, Pink Floyd’s Scott Page, Lady Gaga, and appearances at the White House for President and Mrs. Clinton on 4 different occasions, starting at age 12.  On one of those occasions, he became the youngest person to ever perform at a State Dinner, playing with the Marine Strolling Strings for the President of Hungary.  He has since performed at 7 other events for the Clintons and continues to keep in touch as proved by his 14 letters from the first family.  He has judged accordion competitions in the US, Canada, and Europe, in addition to music competitions in general.  Cory also gives masterclasses on both Music Theory, Improvisation, and the Accordion at various universities throughout the US.

On his Classical side which is less known, a win at 16 years old in a concerto competition at the New England Conservatory of Music, gave Pesaturo the rare opportunity to perform with a Symphony Orchestra as a featured soloist, where he became the youngest accordionists to ever solo with a symphony orchestra in the US back in 2003.  Concerning his Jazz side, Cory recorded two CD’s with saxophone legend George Garzone and his famous band “The Fringe” at age 19.  Since that time, Jazz has become the genre Cory is most noted for, though he feels comfortable improvising in almost any style.  It is worth noting that all of Pesaturo’s performances at the 3 World Championships were played on accordions which were not his, and were mostly improvised; Both of these are completely unprecedented in the world of accordion competition.

Cory is also heavily involved and respected with the weather and motor sports worlds as well.  From 2005 to 2006, he composed the Official list of records set by the record-breaking 2005 Atlantic hurricane season.  He has also written the lists for the 2007 and 2008 Seasons as well.  Moreover, he has put out reports on Winter Seasons for the Northeast of the United States, which have been featured on Accuweather.com and Wunderground.com amongst others.  He is known for being a pioneer in the FreeSledding world with his own sledding mountain called “CN Mountain”, and has various other hobbies which he dedicates himself to, including writing sports blogs for such as Bleacher Report.  Furthermore, he collaborated with members of the Red Sox and bands such as the Drop Kick Murphy’s on the “Fenway 100” album which released in 2012.  His music is regularly played with Formula 1 broadcasts on NBC, FOX, and Velocity, and has an ongoing musical relationship with 98.5 The Sports Hub in Boston.  Cory is also currently working on a Formula 1 book that looks to change the way people analyze sports history and its champions in a similar fashion to Bill James’ Sabermetrics book on Baseball.

DINA MORRONE

Dina Morrone, a blue-eyed, blonde, Canadian, was born in the remote northern Ontario city of Thunder Bay, situated on the northwestern tip of Lake Superior. Dina’s Italian Immigrant parents instilled in her the importance of being bilingual. This gift would one day go on to serve her well in her professional life.

From an early age, she was encouraged by her grandfather to write and perform.  Her first time on stage was at the age of four when, along with her older sister, she sang at the Local Italian Hall Annual Christmas Party for five hundred hungry, distracted, screaming Italians. The surreal moment left her with a burning desire to be in front of an audience. After performing in numerous school plays and talent shows, Dina joined a modeling/talent agency.  This brought her briefly to New York City, where she not only fell in love with the Big Apple, but also discovered a passion for designing clothes. After graduating from the Ryerson University Fashion Design Program in Toronto, Canada, she designed clothes for local rock bands and private clients. But Dina yearned to perform and soon embarked on a successful career in front of the camera, as well as at the microphone. She landed some high profile commercials for Kodak, RCA Records, and American Express, just to name a few.

While on location in Antigua, hosting a Travel Show, she met an Italian Film Crew, who encouraged her to take her talent to Italy.  She moved to Rome and in just three month, was chosen by FORD Automobiles, Italy Division, for a National Ad campaign.  She went on to do high profile commercials for Kodak, RCA Records, and American Express to name a few. This lead to more work in Film, Theater and Voice Over. She was cast in European and Italian/American co-productions.  Dina feels very privileged to have worked with the likes of Alain Delon, Klaus Kinski, Martin Sheen, Roberto Benigni, Inna Tchourikova, Alexander Gallin, Claudia Koll, Jacques Deray, Ralph Thomas, Tinto Brass, Elvio Porta, Bruno Corbucci and Norman Jewison.

Because of Dina’s bilingual abilities, RAI Television hired her to host a number of Culturally Informative television shows which aired all over the world. Her sultry voice was used by the Italian dubbing community to re-voice well over one hundred films, narrate documentaries and animation. One of Dina’s many highlights in Rome, besides meeting Federico Fellini, was the opportunity to work with American screen and stage actress Susan Strasberg, as her personal assistant during Susan’s “Intensive Master Acting Workshops.”

Since moving to Los Angeles, Dina has been actively involved with various Theatre Groups and continues to work as an Actress, Voice Over Talent, Writer and Theatre Producer. Dina is the Voice Over Announcer of the American Cinema Editor’s ACE Eddie Awards, the MPSE Awards for Outstanding Achievement in Motion Picture Sound Editing, the CAS Awards (Cinema Audio Society) for Sound Mixing, (HPA) Hollywood Post Alliance Awards, and Vaughan International Film Festival, to name a few.

Dina was invited by the Italian Consulate Office in Los Angeles to be the Master of Ceremonies for the Italian National Holiday – Festa Nazionale Della Repubblica, the MC at UCLA’S Royce Hall for the Orchestra Italiana del Cinema, an evening dedicated to the music of the Federico Fellini’s Movies and their Composers Nino Rota and Nicola Piovani, and the MC for the International Committee of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association at the 61st International Benefit Ball Honoring the Consulor Corps – an evening entitled ITALIA, centuries of Art and Style – held at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. The FBI LA Office invited Dina to be the Keynote Speaker for the FBI Annual Memorial. This was a great honor for Dina as the event is a solemn tribute to those Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation who died in the line of duty. The event is commemorated annually at the Federal Building in Los Angeles.

Through countless short stories Dina has written over the years, she has given birth to a very entertaining and funny One Woman Show entitled, “The Italian in Me,” which had its World Premiere at the Globe Playhouse, in Los Angeles. She garnered rave reviews by critics and audiences for both her acting and writing. In June 2018 she received the Valley Theatre Award for Best One Person Show. She was also named by reviewplays.com, one of the Top Ten Best Actresses and the Los Angeles Woman’s Festival (LAWTF) presented her with the Inspiring Solo Performance Award.

The “Italian In Me,” went on to be performed at the Los Angeles Women’s Theater Festival, Marilyn Monroe Theatre, Pepperdine University in Malibu, Theatre West – WEST FEST Festival, Portraits of Humanity, a solo series festival, The Odyssey Theatre, The Italian Cultural Institute, The Feast of San Gennaro, in Hollywood, LA Women’s Club, Highways Theatre, The Santa Monica Playhouse in Santa Monica CA, The Electric Lodge in Venice, CA, The Potawatoni Casino in Milwaukee, and The Diesel Playhouse, in Toronto, Canada.

Dina’s full-length play, MOOSE ON THE LOOSE, a comedy about an Italian family and a Canadian moose, had its world premiere at Theatre West in Los Angeles, CA. The show was a smash hit with sold out shows. The show was then picked up and produced by Magnus Theatre in 2015, and Sudbury Theatre Centre STC, in 2017. Both theaters are in Ontario, Canada.

Since 2015, Dina has been the contributing editor and feature writer of The Eden Magazine and most recently she interviewed the legendary icon and artist, Gina Lollobrigida. The magazines aim is to create a better environment where we all live among other living beings in peace and harmony. It spreads compassion to all sentient beings. The magazine also supports artists whose work matches the criteria of the magazine.

Dina is a proud member of The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television, Playwrights Guild Of Canada, Dramatists Guild Of America, Women In Theatre, Theatre West, The Producers League of Los Angeles, L’Accademia Italiana Di Cucina, Canadians Abroad, Theatre Ontario, LA Stage Alliance, SAG-AFTRA, ACTRA, AEA, Ryerson Alumni, UCLA Alumni, Beverly Hills Woman’s Club, Italian Cultural Institute, Le D.I.V.E, and currently sits on the Artistic Board of Theatre West.

JOE LOPICCOLO

Joe LoPiccolo is a guitarist and composer whose work is influenced by Classical, Jazz and World Music styles. Writer Dan O’Heron of the Pasadena Weekly states his music is “Soft spoken eloquence, fascinatingly improvised.” and “The music is comforting and visual, it takes you to a better place, a paradise found.”

Joe LoPiccolo is a graduate of The California Institute of the Arts, receiving his BFA in Jazz Guitar and his MFA in Guitar Performance. He is also a graduate of the Berklee College of Music Youth Summer Program and has taken masterclasses with guitarists Guinga, Paco Serrano and Mick Goodrick.

He is adjunct faculty at Mt. San Antonio College and College of the Canyons where he teaches World Music, Rock Music History, Group Guitar, Guitar Improvisation and Individual Guitar Instruction in both Jazz and classical genres. He has authored two texts, Guitar Mosaic and Improvisation for Guitarists and was a contributor to Andrew York’s Jazz Guitar For Classical Cats series by Alfred. Joe was a columnist for Fingerstyle Guitar Magazine, writing a column entitled “The Global Guitarist”.

He has been an ASCAP Plus Award recipient and won the Guitar Player Magazine “Reader’s Challenge” in February of 2006. Joe has Endorsement or Artist deals with Sadowsky Guitars, Evans Amps and La Bella Strings amongst others.

A proud native Washingtonian, Anise Jenkins is a two-time graduate of Howard University (BA in political science and Masters in Business Administration) and currently resides in the Shaw neighborhood in the District of Columbia.



Jenkins is the executive director of Stand Up! for Democracy in DC (Free DC).  Since its inception, Stand Up! / Free DC was the only grassroots organization in the District of Columbia focused primarily on the pursuit of statehood.  Recognizing that only through being admitted to the Union as a state, will DC residents be able to rise above the ongoing oppression by members of Congress.  This year, Stand Up!  is celebrating two decades of agitating, educating, organizing and mobilizing for DC statehood. 



Anise is passionately committed to all forms of equal civil and human rights causes.  She was named one of the 50 most influential people in Washington, DC in 2013 by The Washington Informer, received a Trailblazer Award in 2005 from the National Congress of Black Women, is a 2002 recipient of a Human Rights Community Award from the United Nations Association of the National Capital Area and is a member of DC Area Phi Beta Kappa Association.



Follow Anise Jenkins on Twitter at @MsFreeDC and Stand Up! at @StandUp_Free DC.

Rebecca S. Smuk the Motor City Medium, is an Internationally renowned and respected spiritual, empathic medium. She does readings to help those that need healing, insight and closure by connecting with loved ones on the other side. She also specializes in violent or highly volatile hauntings and helps others cleanse their homes. Rebecca is one of the very few Mediums to use the Ouija board as a conduit during one on one readings with clients or group seances. She is also a member of G.L.A.S. Paranormal which is a Detroit based team. In addition to being a Paranormal Investigator and Empathic Medium, Rebecca also has been a guest on numerous radio shows and has a very full schedule presenting at various Paranormal Conventions across the country.