Our Team

Hal Real (Co-Founder and Acting Executive Director) is a seasoned entrepreneur with a passion for new ideas and a history of transforming those ideas into successful businesses. He formed Real Entertainment Group, Inc. in order to "radically change the landscape for contemporary music audiences and artists." In October 2004, Hal delivered the first installment of that promise by opening World Cafe Live, a nationally-acclaimed live music venue and restaurant complex in Philadelphia. A gifted musician, Hal is active in other arts, educational and community organizations. He is the Chairman of the Board of the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance, a member of the Philadelphia Mayor's Cultural Advisory Board, a Board member and strategic planning chair of The People's Light & Theatre Company, and a past chairman of the Main Line Chamber of Commerce. Hal has been a guest speaker for various business and civic events, and often serves as a guest lecturer at Drexel, Wharton, Temple and other schools. He is a graduate of Kenyon College and Temple University School of Law.

David Bradley (Co-Founder and Arts Education Consultant) brings 20 years' experience as theater artist and arts educator to his work with LCO. He is Artistic Director of the National Constitution Center's play Living News (now in its third season of dramatizing current Constitutional issues) and is a long-time company member and regular director at People's Light and Theatre in the Philadelphia area, where he was Associate Artistic Director and jointly led its nationally-recognized arts education program. He's been a frequent guest director at Indiana Repertory Theatre and has also directed at Children's Theatre Company in Minneapolis. David works regularly with Philadelphia Young Playwrights, and his multi-disciplinary arts education work has included collaborations with the Rosenbach Museum, Spiral Q Puppet Theater, Art-Reach and numerous urban, suburban and special needs schools across the region. David has led panels on art and civic dialogue in the U.S. and Mexico and consults on the arts, education and leadership. He's a member of the board of LiveConnections.org and Shakespeare in Clark Park and a graduate of Yale University.

Tamar Lelkes (Co-Founder and School/Community Partnerships Coordinator) combines experience in musical performance, non-profit arts management, grant making and educational partnerships in her work with LCO. She currently works with corporations, nonprofits, schools, and community groups as a part of the business development group at the Goodwin College of Professional Studies at Drexel University. Previously, she managed grant programs for the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance and worked as the General Manager of Tempesta di Mare, an early music ensemble in Philadelphia. Tamar has performed throughout Israel, Europe and the US, and has a degree in Early Music Performance from Indiana University and a Masters in Arts Administration from Drexel University.

Bill Taylor (Programming and Development Consultant) is a Wilmington, DE native who has returned to the area to head up the Light Up the Queen Foundation. For the past seven years, Bill served as the executive director of the Tipitina's Foundation in New Orleans, which runs innovative programs that empower and perpetuate the music culture and heritage of New Orleans. In addition to creating successful programs, such as Tipitina's Music Office Co-op and donating over $3 million worth of musical instruments to New Orleans' public schools, Bill raised over $10 million to fund the foundation. After Hurricane Katrina, he galvanized a massive, multi-faceted relief effort for the music community, which is currently ongoing and has received national recognition. As part of that effort, Bill served as executive producer of a recording tribute to Fats Domino which included Paul McCartney, B.B. King and Willie Nelson. He is a graduate of Princeton University and the Columbia School of Journalism.

Board of Directors

Hal Real, President – President, Real Entertainment Group and World Cafe Live
(Bio above)

Lori Landew, Secretary – Attorney, Cozen O'Connor
Ms. Landew is a Member of Philadelphia-headquartered law firm Cozen O'Connor. She is the past President of Landew Entertainment Business Associates (LEBA) LLC, a consulting enterprise servicing entertainment and media clients. Ms. Landew has worked in the entertainment industry as an attorney and as a business executive for over 20 years. Prior to forming her own company, she was General Counsel of indie music company Ryko Corporation, and Vice President of Business Affairs for Zomba Recording Corporation, home of the Jive, Verity, and Silvertone record labels. Ms. Landew lectures frequently on entertainment business issues at higher learning institutions such as Widener University School of Law, Temple University, Drexel University, Villanova University, University of the Arts, Seton Hall University School of Law, and Columbia University School of Law. Ms. Landew is also on the Board of Governors of the Philadelphia Chapter of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS).

David B. Thornburgh, Treasurer – Executive Director, Fels Institute of Government, University of Pennsylvania
Mr. Thornburgh was appointed Executive Director of the University of Pennsylvania's Fels Institute of Government, the University's Master's level program in public management and public policy, in August 2008. Prior to joining Fels, Mr. Thornburgh served in leadership roles in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors in the Philadelphia region for over 20 years. He is a graduate of Haverford College and holds a Master's Degree in Public Policy from Harvard's Kennedy School of Government.

David Bradley, Director – Theater Artist/Educator/Arts Consultant
(bio above)

John Esposito, Director – President and CEO, WEA Corp.
John Esposito is President of Warner Music Nashville, a division of Warner Music Group (NYSE: WMG) that comprises Warner Bros. Nashville, Atlantic Nashville and Word Label Group. In September 2009, Esposito became the first executive to head the new division, which was created to expand WMG’s presence in the Nashville music community. Prior to becoming President of Warner Music Nashville, Esposito was President and CEO of WEA Corp., WMG’s U.S. sales and retail marketing company, where he was responsible for WEA’s sales and marketing activities, distribution, and global management and distribution of WMG's digital assets, and the Digital Sales and Marketing group, which manages the mobile and online business for WMG's U.S. labels. In that role, Esposito also oversaw WMG’s Alternative Distribution Alliance (ADA), the music industry’s leading distributor of independent record labels and Independent Label Group (ILG), WMG’s family of independent labels. He also spearheads WMG’s environmental campaign, WMGreen, for which he was awarded the Natural Resources Defense Council’s (NRDC) "Forces for Nature" honor in 2006 for his leadership on environmental issues. Esposito joined WMG from The Island Def Jam Music Group (IDJ) where, as General Manager/Executive Vice President, he managed the company’s day-to-day operational activities.  Esposito was one of the original architects of IDJ and helped lead it to become one of the industry’s leading record companies. Prior to IDJ, Esposito held a variety of executive positions at PolyGram, Inc. Before joining PolyGram, from 1993 to 1994, he was the chief operating officer of music and movies at The Wiz retail chain.  From 1986 to 1993, Esposito was Regional Vice President of Mitsubishi Electronics America, where he managed the sales and operations staff. In addition to his work with WMGreen, Esposito is a Founding and Steering Committee Member of NRDC’s Global Leadership Council, a committee of approximately 42 members dedicated to making their respective companies and industries more environmentally-friendly. He also serves on the Board of Directors for the TJ Martell Foundation, one of the world’s leading funders of innovative, early stage cancer and AIDS research.  He is also on the Board Of Directors of LiveConnections, a non-profit agency dedicated to music, education and support for artists.

Esposito holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and is an accomplished guitar player and drummer.

 

Mark P. Loschiavo, Director – Executive Director, Baiada Center for Entrepreneurship at Drexel University & President, First Serve Strategies
Mr. Loschiavo has been the Executive Director of the Laurence A. Baiada Center for Entrepreneurship at Drexel University almost since its inception in 2001. Under his leadership the center has grown in prominence to become a top-10 ranked program in the U.S. He is also a member of the management faculty at the LeBow College of Business, specializing in strategic management, leadership and entrepreneurship. Previously, Mr. Loschiavo was founder and President of: Akcelerant Space, a for-profit incubator; Cenero, a multimedia solutions provider; and founding member of TSS, a technology solutions company that grew to 8,000 employees in five years. Mark held various leadership positions over a 15-year career with IBM, where he had fiduciary responsibilities for a $1 billion profit center and management responsibilities for a 340-person organization. He is a graduate of University of Kentucky, where he holds a Master's Degree in Economic, and a graduate of IBM's Advanced Management School.

Alex Shaw, Director – Musician/Teaching Artist
Mr. Shaw is a musician, arts educator, and dance accompanist. Specializing in Brazilian music traditions, he performs and tours with Philadelphia's award-winning Spoken Hand Percussion Orchestra and Alô Brasil, of which he is Musical Co-Director. As a freelance arts educator he regularly teaches and facilitates residencies and workshops in numerous universities, schools, and organizations throughout the Philadelphia area and beyond. He works as a dance accompanist for Eastern University, Swarthmore College, and University of the Arts, and performs with several Philadelphia-based dance companies, including Kariamu & Company and Dunya Performing Arts Company. Mr. Shaw has been awarded several competitive artist grants to support his music research and study in Brazil, including Arts International's Artist Exploration Fund (2004) and the Independence Foundation Fellowship in the Arts (2007). He is a graduate of Swarthmore College.