Oglesby native and family advance in ‘America’s Got Talent’

The Sharpe Family Singers, who have ties to Oglesby, passed their audition on Tuesday’s program of “America’s Got Talent.”

The family of six singers, including La Salle-Peru High School graduate Ron Sharpe, received the approval of judges Simon Cowell, Howie Mandell, Heidi Klum and Sofia Vergara and a standing ovation after their performance of “How Far I’ll Go” from Disney’s “Moana.”

The Sharpe family, who lives in Basking Ridge, New Jersey, have 8.5 million followers on TikTok and 1.6 million subscribers on YouTube. In 2019, Ron performed “Married to Broadway” at the Matthiessen Auditorium at La Salle-Peru High School to benefit Stage 212. Lori Christopherson of Stage 212 described them then as a modern day Partridge Family.

In the program aired Tuesday, Vergara told the Sharpe family they were “perfection.” Mandel said he loves what they’re doing and Klum said the family is living her dream to sing with their entire family. Cowell spoke through Vergara, because he lost his voice, complimenting them by having her tell them they were American as “apple pie.”

The family consists of Samantha, who appeared on “American Idol,” Logan and twins Connor and Aidan.

The family was destined for the stage, as Ron and his wife Barbra met while playing romantic leads Marius and Cosette in the original Broadway production of “Les Misérables.”

“We actually had our first kiss on the stage before we were married, because it was in the show,” Ron said during Tuesday’s program.

“From production to reproduction,” Mandel joked in an exchange with the family prior to their performance.

Ron and Barbra lived in Illinois for a short while, moving back to the New York City area when Samantha was about 3 years old. The family also has visited the Illinois Valley to see relatives, including Ron’s mother Audrey.

America’s Got Talent airs at 7 p.m. Tuesdays on NBC.