Performers
Leandra Ramm
mezzo-soprano/actor
AGMA/AEA/SAG-AFTRA
Leandra Ramm is a remarkably versatile mezzo-soprano and actress with an “extraordinary voice” (Anderson Cooper 360), whose “beautiful and quite moving” (Nordstjernan Newspaper) performances have graced prestigious venues including Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, the United Nations, and Symphony Space. Ms. Ramm made her debut as a soloist in Kurt Weill’s The Eternal Road with the American Symphony Orchestra at Avery Fisher Hall. Recently, she performed the title role in La Cenerentola with San Francisco Opera Guild and appeared as a soloist with the San Francisco Symphony in Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms and Bach’s Magnificat.
As a seasoned musical theater performer, Ms. Ramm recently starred as Judy Garland in The Boy from Oz at Theatre Rhinoceros, Tanya in Mamma Mia! at Woodminster Summer Musicals, and Antonia in Man of La Mancha with the Diablo Theatre Company. She has also flourished in the creation of new works, portraying Annie in Hell’s Kitchen the Musical at the Hudson Guild Theatre and Hester Prynne in A for Adultery, a musical adaptation of The Scarlet Letter, at the Little Times Square Theatre. Ms. Ramm also stars in her one-woman show, One Night with You, which was performed Off-Broadway at Theatre Row in New York City to a sold-out audience.
Lou and Josie Esposito
This dynamic duo partnered up nuptially in 2006 although they have performed together since their pre-teen years! Both hold an abundance of talent. Lou has worked as a percussionist, M.C., and vocalist with groups such as Vocalease, The Floorshakers and the Michael Jackson Tribute band, Foreverland. He’s also displayed charismatic and debonair performances on stage as a singing actor in local musical theatre productions such as Hairspray, The Wizard of Oz, Sister Act and Annie.
Josie has shared her love of music producing jazz concerts, music revues and recitals for the Pittsburg community, namely at the California Theatre. The Pittsburg Community Theatre and Poison Apple Productions have benefitted from her work as musical director and sound technician for shows such as Hairspray, Wizard of Oz, Annie, Peter Pan Jr., and Willy Wonka, Jr. Currently, the Espositos enjoy teaching and hope to pass on their musical legacy to their students at the Pittsburg Performing Arts Academy.
Jim Coniglio
Along with the Friends of Isola’s first event at the California Theater in downtown Pittsburg in the summer of 2017, Jim is also an accomplished performer within the the East Bay musical theater scene. His last major role was Tevye in Fiddler on the roof which was also produced at the California Theater. Ironically, Jim actually got his start here in Oakland performing under the stars at Woodminster Amphitheatre where he played Lazar Wolfe in Fiddler on the Roof and Dewey in Legally Blonde among other roles. His other credits include Jacob in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, The Music Man, Les Miserables, Sunset Boulevard, Evita, White Christmas and Man of La Mancha (the show where he met Leandra) which were all produced at the Lesher Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek. Jim is a graduate of Pittsburg High School and holds a B.S. in Biology from Cal State East Bay.