Michele Balan

MICHELE BALAN was a finalist on NBC’s Last Comic Standing, and titleholder of "Last Woman Comic Standing." Michele was voted one of the “Top 10 Comics” by Backstage Magazine and The San Francisco Bay Times. Broadway World honored Michele at number two in their Top 10 List of cabaret performers.

Michele headlines around the country at leading comedy clubs, festivals such as Montreal’s “Just for Laughs,” corporate events, JCCs, country clubs, on cruises, and more! She has appeared several times on The Joy Behar Show, The View, and has numerous appearances on HBO, Showtime, Comedy Central, Byron Allen's Comics Unleashed, and recently on NBC’s The Today Show, and Gotham Live.

Roxanna Ward

Cabaret-comic extraordinaire Roxanna Ward hails from Laguna Beach, California. Her engaging blend of piano bar and comedy caused one reviewer to observe, “It’s as if Bette Midler and Steve Allen had a love child.” A pianist, musical arranger, producer, conductor (Milwaukee Symphony), and teacher, Ward has worked with legends Dolly Parton, Laura Nyro, Tennessee Ernie Ford, and Bea Arthur. As a songwriter, she penned the R&B single “Remember Who You Are,” which reached number 16 on Billboard’s jazz chart when recorded by the Phyllis Hyman, and more recently was recorded by Suede. Roxanna is a beloved member of the Olivia family; her Olivia debut was on an Alaska cruise in 1992. Since then, she's joined us several times a year, and her brilliant comedy, writing, musicianship, and singing endears her to audiences everywhere. Whether you are seeing Roxanna for the first time or the tenth, she always makes you laugh and warms your heart. 

Pam Rose

Few voices have the power to cut to the bone like Pam Rose’s. Layer that over her profound songwriting gift and her consummate musicianship on an assortment of instruments, and you begin to get a glimpse of a real artist. 

Rose has been nominated for two Grammy Awards with longtime writing partner Mary Ann Kennedy, with whom she formed the acclaimed duo Kennedy Rose. The twosome recorded on rock star Sting’s private label Pangaea Records, founded for “uncategorizable music,” and opened for one of his world tours. Kennedy Rose also performed twice for President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Clinton and at a Nobel Peace Prize presentation, as special guests of Emmylou Harris. 

Pam has enjoyed a vibrant life of touring, having toured multiple times as an acoustic trio with Kennedy and Harris, treating the crowds to their impressive three-part blend, and as a solo artist, appearing with Australian acoustic guitar virtuoso Tommy Emmanuel.  

As a solo artist, Pam has recorded the CDs Morpheus, Fly, The Temple Sessions and Sacred Song. Sacred Song has already garnered exposure in a documentary currently on the festival circuit titled “Invisible”. Rose is also featured in the documentary. "Invisible" captured the audience award for "Best Documentary" at the Frameline San Francisco International LGBTQ Film Festival. Pam also enjoyed hit record status in Sweden; her song “Never You” (cowritten with Swedish icon Marit Bergman) soared in the Scandinavian charts and was a favorite on the soundtrack CD for Sweden’s most successful TV series, Jill’s Veranda. 

As a guest artist, she has sung harmony with the likes of Art Garfunkel and Neil Young and appeared on a host of hit records, most notably in “How Do I Live?,” recorded by LeAnn Rhimes, and “Independence Day,” recorded by Martina McBride. Pam’s appeared with Emmanuel on his PBS show, on which she performed one of her Grammy-nominated songs, “I’ll Still Be Loving You,” and “Haba Na Haba,” a composition cowritten with Emmanuel that appears on his CD Little by Little. Inspired by the Swahili proverb “Haba Na Haba”—which translates to “little by little, we fill the cup”—it is a story of hope and taking long, sometimes arduous journeys one step at a time. 

Born in Chattanooga, Pam moved with her family to Atlanta and then to Florida’s east coast, where she spent her formative years. After majoring in music at Florida State University, she lived in Atlanta and was mentored by jazz musician Paul Mitchell. Pam currently resides in Nashville, TN. 

Wendy Moten

Wendy Moten is an exceptional, adaptable singer, a pure musical spirit, and a bridge from Memphis to Nashville to the rest of the world. Respected in the music industry as a consummate professional for years, the wider public discovered her talent and charm through her remarkable run on NBC’s The Voice in 2021. She turned all four judges’ chairs on her blind audition and ended up in second place overall – unprecedented for an artist in her 50s. A native of Memphis, Moten sang R&B on a major label in the 90s then moved to Nashville to become an in-demand harmony singer. She spent 15 years as the key support voice for Julio Iglesias. And she has toured with Martina McBride, Tim McGraw & Faith Hill, and Vince Gill. She’s performed as a soloist on the Grand Ole Opry multiple times and been a featured artist in the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum’s Musician Spotlight series. In 2019 she joined the Grammy-winning Nashville western swing band The Time Jumpers.  

Mikalah Gordon

Mikalah Gordon, a Las Vegas Native, made her entertainment debut as a Top 12 contestant on season four of American Idol. Audiences fell in love with her powerful voice and unique stage presence, and she's been hitting all the right notes ever since. Her run on Idol earned her a record deal with famed judge Randy Jackson on Interscope Records, making her a household name. In addition to her vocal success, Mikalah has made her mark on the LA comedy scene with her edgy stand up performances, headlining at The Comedy Store, and The Laugh Factory. The spicy comedienne has starred on the WB sitcom “Living with Fran,” with Fran Drescher; as a field correspondent for “The Tyra Banks Show” and “The TV Guide Network,” and served as a co-host on “American Idol Extra.” Mikalah has also proven a knack for the dramatic when she starred on the CBS hit show, “The Unit." Mikalah was recently a featured resident singer with Post Modern Jukebox in Los Angeles, and now you can catch this soulful chanteuse Wednesday-Saturday at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas Hotel’s Rose. Rabbit. Lie.

Debórah Eliezer

Debórah Eliezer, (she/her,) is a mixed identity Arab Jew, theater maker, social activist and California fire survivor living and working on the unceded territory of the Ramaytush Ohlone. Passionate about the power of human transformation, her work focuses on disrupting assumptions about art, human values and society. She is the Artistic Director of Aviva Arts, an Associate Artist with Golden Thread, an artEquity arts facilitator alumna, and serves on the MENA Alliance of Theatre Makers steering committee.  Formerly the Artistic Director of foolsFURY Theater, she has devised numerous world premieres in SF and NYC, working with playwrights Katie Pearl, Kate Tarker, Yussef el Guindi, Denmo Ibrahim, Torange Yeghiazarian, Fabrice Melquiot, Angela Santillo, Sheila Callaghan, Doug Dorst, Ben Yalom and Dan Chumley. Eliezer wrote and performs (dis)Place[d] which toured the FURY Factory Festival of Ensemble Theater, Ko Fest, Olivia Cruises, Limmud UK and is featured in Michael Malek Najjar’s book, Middle Eastern American Theatre: Communities, Cultures and Artists.  She stars in the short film Wresting Place written and directed by Coral Cohen release date TBD. As a professional voiceover, you may have heard her voice in over 25 Leapfrog Toys, Sims 2, 3 and 4 video games or numerous radio ads.  A San Francisco native, she holds a B.A. Cum Laude from SFSU, is a Certified Sound, Voice Movement Healing Arts Practitioner from California Institute of Integral Studies and a certified yoga teacher. She maintains a private coaching practice for students and professionals on zoom and in the SF Bay Area.    

Ashager Araro

Ashager Araro is the woman breaking down barriers in Israel. Born in Ethiopia, Araro came to Israel as an infant on Operation Solomon, a covert military mission that airlifted Ethiopian Jews to Israel in 1991. One of eight siblings, she grew up in central Israel and went on to excel in the Israel Defense Forces, where she rose to the rank of Lieutenant in the prestigious Paratroopers Brigade (now Captain in res.). Following her military service, Araro pursued a career in diplomacy and social advocacy, visiting countries around the world to engage audiences as a proud black, Jewish, Zionist, Israeli woman. Active on social media, she uses her significant presence on Twitter/ Instagram to speak on crucial topics and shed light on the diversity of the Jewish people. Ashager received the "Light of Israel" award in 2021 by Israel MFA for her work. Alongside her fulfilling work in public diplomacy, Ashager built Battae, a center for Ethiopian Israeli heritage. Through educational programs, the center enables Israelis and members of the global Jewish community to explore the unique story and contributions of Ethiopian Jews in Israel. 

Yoni Shaked

Yoni Shaked was born and raised in Moshav Netiv Ha’asara, located 100 meters from the Gaza Strip border. From a young age, Yoni knew she was passionate about Israel, and today lectures groups from around the world about the reality of living alongside the Gaza Strip and the Geopolitics of Israel and the Middle East. During her military service in the Israel Defense Forces, Yoni served as a content development coordinator in the Information & Communications Technology Force. Her role was to oversee, train, and empower the commanders on the base. In 2014, she participated in the StandWithUs Israel fellowship, where Yoni continued working there for six years and served as the SWU Director of Israel Student Programs. Yoni is a Certified Lawyer and is currently working on her thesis about the American public opinion towards Israel through the lens of Intersectionality theory. This is part of her Master's Degree in Government with a concentration in Political Marketing at Reichman University. 

Nurit Shein

Nurit is a Sabra, born in Tel Aviv. She was one of the activists who in the seventies founded the Aguda and has been active in fighting for gay rights ever since. For the last twenty years, she lived and worked in Philadelphia as the CEO of the leading LGBTQ health and social services organization. She has been active in local and national advocacy in the U.S. on behalf of the community. She is also a retired Lieutenant Colonel. She now resides back in Tel Aviv and is the Chair of the Aguda.  

The Aguda - The Association for LGBTQ Equality in Israel - is Israel’s pioneer gay organization, advocating for full equality and acceptance of the community. The Aguda provides individuals with extensive support services, alongside public and governmental activism. 

Aviv Attia

Aviv Attia, 28, is a Mizrahi Jew born and raised in Tel Aviv. Like many Israelis, Aviv’s family had centuries of history in the Middle East before moving to Israel. His father’s family lived in Spain but were expelled to Tunisia following the Alhambra Decree in 1492. After centuries in Tunisia, they were forced to flee to Israel in the early 1950s.

Part of the oldest Jewish community in the diaspora, unbearable antisemitism forced his maternal grandparents to flee Iraq in the early 1940s with no more than a suitcase to the British Mandate of Palestine.

At age 18, he began his mandatory service in the Israel Defense Forces, serving in the C4I corps a communications intelligence unit at the Israel-Lebanon border. He became operations manager and commander, received awards for leadership, and earned an early promotion.

After his IDF service, Aviv enrolled in university, where he was selected for the Rabin Leadership Program, a prestigious project that prepares participants to take leadership roles in shaping Israel’s future. In 2019, Aviv graduated with a degree in Government, Diplomacy, Strategy & Sustainability, and began working for StandWithUs, a non-profit organization that supports Israel and fights antisemitism through non-partisan education. Until recently Aviv lived in the United States educating thousands of people helping them to gain a perspective on Israel that is often not shared in the media.

Aviv now lives in London and is the StandWithUs UK Director. This year, Aviv got his master’s degree in diplomacy at Tel Aviv University. Aviv is also a volunteer and has been a member of the Israel LGBTQ+ Association. He managed the LGBTQ+ Union on his campus and has continuously volunteered in the ‘Aguda’—educating small and big businesses on how to make a safe work environment for LGBTQ+ employees.

DJ Lisa Pittman

DJ Lisa Pittman has been making toes tap, getting heads nodding, and asking people to put their hands in the air for over 13 years. From LP to CD turntables, she delivers an open format mix of club hits, hip-hop, and EDM.   

DJLP holds down long-time and coveted DJ residencies for some of the most iconic names in Las Vegas nightlife: Studio 54 at the MGM Grand, TAO at the Venetian, and Marquee at The Cosmopolitan. She has been nominated for and awarded “Best DJ” in multiple categories, had her residencies crowned “Best in Nightlife,” and seen the nightclubs she spun for nationally recognized during her tenure as the premiere clubs in the world.  

She competed on the final season of VH1’s Master of the Mix and has shared stages with some of the biggest artists in pop and hip hop. DJLP has DJ’d all over the world at LGBT events and festivals and for destination events, including for Olivia, Dinah, and Shedonism.  

You don’t have to pay a cover charge to hear DJLP—she’s now broadcasting locally and nationally on the EDM and festival music station FireLane for Entercom Los Angeles and on the LGBTQ station Channel Q for Radio.com.