(NEW YORK) — Deaf Broadway returns to Lincoln Center, following the 2021 production of Into the Woods, featuring an entirely deaf cast. This year they perform Stephen Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd, the chilling story following “the demon barber of Fleet Street.”
Just as last year, they’ll perform the show completely in American Sign Language in front of a screen broadcasting a filmed version.
The cast takes the stage July 31, the final day of disability pride month, celebrating the passing of the Americans with Disabilities Act in July 1990. Showtime is 7:30 p.m.
Miranda Hoffner works in the accessibility department of Lincoln Center.
“We’re excited to center that in the month of July and really focus on deaf and disabled artists and then how to make sure that anyone can go to anything they’re interested in at Lincoln Center at any time and have their needs met, but accessibility has been part of Lincoln Center story since its founding,” she said of her work at Lincoln Center.
Hoffner says the accessibility department prioritizes making their productions enjoyable for all people, regardless of disability. This season they employed “haptic feedback,” which allows audiences to feel the music through their skin.
“Audience members are able to wear a backpack that sort of goes along their spine, very lightweight, and then wristbands and ankle bands and they pulse all five octaves,” she said. “It’s like really, really amazing to be able to feel music and take in music in another way.”
Hoffner also shares that the halls of Lincoln Center are wheelchair accessible and that they offer captioning on personal devices and even visual descriptions for those who are blind.
This Sunday, they expect members of the deaf community, disability community and theatre and Sondheim fans alike to attend the production.
(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden tested negative for COVID-19 on Tuesday night and again Wednesday morning and will end “his strict isolation measures,” according to the physician to the president, Dr. Kevin O’Connor.
The negative test comes less than one week after the president’s first positive test on Thursday morning.
Biden finished his five-day course of Paxlovid 36 hours ago, O’Connor wrote in a memo Wednesday morning that was subsequently released by the White House.
“His symptoms have been steadily improving, and are almost completely resolved,” O’Connor wrote.
In remarks later Wednesday morning from the Rose Garden, Biden called his recovery a “real statement of where we are in the fight against COVID-19.”
“Even if you get COVID, you can avoid winding up with a severe case. You can now prevent most COVID deaths, and that’s because of three free tools the Biden administration has invested in and distributed this past year: booster shots, at-home tests [and] easy-to-use, effective treatments. We got through COVID with no fear, I got through it with no fear, a very mild discomfort because of these essential, life-saving tools,” he said.
“COVID was killing thousands of Americans a day when I got here. That isn’t the case anymore. You can live without fear by doing what I did, get boosted, get tested and get treatment. At the same time, my administration remains vigilant. Right now, we have the tools to keep you from getting severely ill or dying from COVID, but we’re not stopping there,” he added.
His comments mark a continuation of the White House’s message that while the coronavirus is here to stay — something many public health experts have long been warning and fighting against — life can go largely back to normal for many, if not all, Americans.
“Let’s keep emerging from one of the darkest moments of our history with hope and light for what can come,” Biden said.
The president likely had the highly contagious BA.5 subvariant, and his symptoms had included a runny nose, cough, sore throat, a slight fever and body aches. O’Connor never reported any abnormalities in Biden’s pulse, blood pressure, respiratory rate or oxygen saturation throughout his infection.
Biden told reporters Monday that all his test results were “good” and “on the button.”
Biden is ending his strict isolation measures after being confined to the White House residence since his diagnosis. He will continue to wear a “well-fitting” mask as needed for 10 days.
He worked while in isolation, posting a photograph on Twitter Monday of him and his dog, Commander, saying he “took some calls this morning with man’s best co-worker.”
The president tweeted a picture of his negative test on Wednesday and said that he’s returning to the Oval Office.
Biden “continues to be very specifically conscientious to protect any of the Executive Residence, White House, Secret Service and other staff whose duties require any (albeit socially distanced) proximity to him,” O’Connor wrote in his memo on Wednesday.
Biden will increase his testing cadence in light of the possibility of a Paxlovid “rebound,” O’Connor wrote, referring to a seemingly rare but increasingly reported phenomenon in which COVID symptoms recur or there is the development of a new positive viral test after having tested negative.
The president is fully vaccinated and has received two booster shots, but at the age of 79 was considered to be at a higher risk for severe illness.
Dr. Ashish Jha, the White House COVID-19 response coordinator, stressed after Biden’s diagnosis that all Americans should take advantage of vaccinations and treatments courses.
“This is a president who’s double-vaccinated, double-boosted, getting treatments that are widely available to Americans and has at this moment a mild respiratory illness,” Jha told ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday. “This is really good news, and this is both vaccines and treatments that are available to everyone. Really important that people go out and get vaccinated and avail themselves of these treatments if they get infected.”
First lady Jill Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris both tested negative for COVID-19 after spending time with the president before his diagnosis.
ABC News’ Ben Gittleson, Alexandra Hutzler and Arielle Mitropoulos contributed to this report.
Ed Sheeran is currently winning the race for the most popular artist on Spotify. The “Bad Habits” singer is now the first artist to hit 100 million followers on the platform.
Ed celebrated the fun news on Twitter, where he shared a hilarious video of him palling around his recent concert while wearing a white tee shirt that reads in all capital letters, “Ask me about my 100 million Spotify followers.”
The Grammy winner is undoubtedly proud of his latest milestone and narrates in the hilarious video, “So I just hit 100 million followers on Spotify and Spotify has sent me this tee shirt. So I’m going to walk around the stadium and ask people to ask me about my 100 million followers because they’re all going to be so excited for me!”
Ed films himself as he runs around backstage, greeting various people in hopes of being asked about his Spotify win. Despite all the chest puffing and physical gesturing, no one plays along and that causes the redhead to stalk away in defeat.
Eventually, Ed approaches singer Maisie Peters, who does seem genuinely interested in his latest achievement. She gives him a round of applause and exclaims, “Aw, well done, Ed Sheeran! Woo!” The two then share a hug.
The video ends with another person asking Ed about his tee shirt, to which the “Shivers” singer quips, “You’re not meant to ask!”
“Absolutely mental,” the video caption reads. “What an achievement Ed. Congrats!”
Ed is currently on his Mathematics Tour in support of his latest album, = (Equals). He is set to take over Paris on Friday.
The “Down” rockers have announced 311 Day at Sea, a concert cruise taking place March 8-13, 2023. While 311 has hosted many cruises before, 311 Day at Sea will be the first one to be sailing on the band’s annual celebration, which takes place on March 11.
311 Day at Sea will depart from Miami and will make stops in Harvest Caye, Belize and Roatán, Honduras. Along with three separate 311 headlining performances, the cruise will feature a lineup of bands and comedians, which will be announced at a later date.
Pre-sale tickets will be available beginning August 10 followed by the general sale on August 16. For more info, visit 311Cruise.com.
If you’d prefer to see 311 on land, you can catch their upcoming U.S. tour kicking off in September.
ABC’s CMA Fest special is fast approaching, hosted by Dierks Bentley and Elle King and featuring all the highlights from CMA Fest 2022.
Ahead of next week’s show, the Country Music Association is revealing the set list, and it’s a high-energy blend of classic hits, fast-rising new singles and megawatt duets.
Old Dominion is performing their latest single, “No Hard Feelings,” while Kane Brown’s rocking the stage with his brand-new “Like I Love Country Music” as well as his chart-topping “One Mississippi.”
Carrie Underwood and Cole Swindell are both bringing new songs to the stage, too. Cole will also be joined by Lainey Wilson for a performance of their hit, “Never Say Never.”
Meanwhile, lots of artists are revisiting old favorites from their catalogs. Dierks will perform “Drunk on a Plane,” Luke Bryan is dusting off “Kick the Dust Up” and Darius Rucker will treat fans to his modern-day country classic “Wagon Wheel.”
Every year, collaboration is a major highlight of CMA Fest, and that will be represented in the special, too: Wynonna Judd and Carly Pearce will share their performance of “Why Not Me,” and Lady A is teaming up with Breland for a rendition of “Need You Now.” Zac Brown Band will share the stage with Darius for “Chicken Fried,” and Elle and Ashley McBryde will come together for Elle’s hit, “Ex’s and Oh’s.”
CMA Fest airs on ABC on August 3 at 8 p.m. ET. It’ll be available to watch the next day on Hulu.
(ST. PAUL, Minn.) — The first of two former police officers convicted on federal charges in the death of George Floyd was sentenced to prison Wednesday.
Former Minneapolis police officer J. Alexander Kueng was ordered by U.S. District Court Judge Paul Magnuson to serve three years in federal prison, followed by two years of supervised release, according to ABC affiliate station KSTP in St. Paul.
Kueng’s former police colleague, Tou Thao, is scheduled to learn his fate from Magnuson at a second hearing on Wednesday in U.S. District Court in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Prior to sentencing Kueng, Floyd’s cousin Sabrina Montgomery and his girlfriend, Courtney Ross, gave victim impact statements.
Ross addressed Kueng directly with compassion, telling him, “this sentence will not define you” and urging him to “define your purpose,” KSTP reported.
“This does not mean you cannot find your footing to stand up for what’s right in the future,” Ross told Kueng.
Montgomery asked Magnuson to give both Kueng and Thao the maximum sentence.
“All of these men deserve to serve longer sentences,” Montgomery said, according to KSTP. “The system these officers operated in is flawed, but again, where is their humanity?”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Manda Sertich told Magnuson that Kueng admitted during his trial testimony that he was aware that it was his duty to intervene, but he failed to act.
“All he had to do per MPD policy was attempt to intervene,” Sertich said, according to KSTP.
Kueng declined to make a statement in court before he was sentenced. But his attorney, Thomas Plunkett, spoke on his behalf, telling Magnuson, “He’s a nice young man that attempted to help the community by taking on a difficult role … and now he’s being sentenced for that.”
Both Kueng, 28, and Thao, 35, were convicted by a federal jury in February along with their former police colleague Thomas Lane, 39, who received a sentence last week of 2 1/2 years in prison for violating Floyd’s civil rights.
Federal prosecutors had asked for a sentence of 6 1/2 years for Lane, which according to federal sentencing guidelines, was the maximum.
All three men were convicted of using the “color of the law,” or their positions as police officers, to deprive Floyd of his civil rights by willfully being indifferent to his serious medical needs.
Prosecutors said the three officers failed to intervene as the handcuffed, unarmed 46-year-old Black man was pinned under the knee of their senior officer, Derek Chauvin, for more than nine minutes on May 25, 2020, outside a Minneapolis convenience store where Floyd was accused of using a phony $20 bill to buy cigarettes.
Thao and Kueng were also convicted of violating Floyd’s right to be free of an unreasonable seizure by willfully failing to intervene to prevent Chauvin from applying bodily injury to Floyd.
Prosecutors had requested a “substantially higher” federal sentence than Lane’s, but far less than what Chauvin received.
Chauvin was sentenced on Thursday by Magnuson to serve 21 years in prison after pleading guilty in December to violating Floyd’s civil rights and admitting he kept his knee on Floyd’s neck even after he became unresponsive. Chauvin also pleaded guilty to depriving a then-14-year-old boy of his constitutional right to be free from the use of unreasonable force by an officer, which resulted in bodily injury to the teen, according to the Justice Department.
Magnuson also sentenced Lane.
The length of Kueng’s sentence is lower than the recommended federal sentencing guidelines, which called for 4 1/4 years to 5 1/4 years.
“The facts of this case do not amount to second-degree murder under federal law,” Magnuson wrote in a ruling last week. “Defendants Kueng and Thao each made a tragic misdiagnosis in their assessment of Mr. Floyd.”
Magnuson noted that Kueng and Thao believed Floyd was suffering from a drug overdose and “excited delirium” — a syndrome in which a subject displays wild agitation and violent behavior that can sometimes lead to death.
Lane was the only police officer involved in Floyd’s fatal arrest to express concern for the man’s well-being. Police body-camera video played at the three former officers’ federal trial captured Lane asking twice if they should roll Floyd onto his side from a prone position to help ease his breathing.
Chauvin, 46, was also convicted in state court in April 2021 on charges of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. He was sentenced in June 2021 by Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill to 22 1/2 years in state prison.
Chauvin will serve his sentence in federal prison concurrently with his state sentence.
Lane also pleaded guilty to state charges of aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter. In exchange for the plea, prosecutors agreed to dismiss the top charge against him of aiding and abetting second-degree unintentional murder. Lane is awaiting his sentence in state court.
Kueng and Thao are scheduled to be put on trial in state court on Oct. 24 on charges of aiding and abetting in murder and aiding and abetting in manslaughter. They have both pleaded not guilty.
(NEW YORK) — Excessive heat warnings are in effect for parts of the Pacific Northwest on Wednesday as temperatures top 100 degrees.
Portland, Oregon, hit 102 degrees, while in Redding, California, temperatures reached 106 degrees on Tuesday. Temperatures in Yakima, Washington, climbed to 107 degrees as well.
The extreme heat is keeping its hold across the state of Washington. Seattle hit a record high of 94 degrees on Tuesday, while Spokane is expected to reach triple digits on Wednesday and Thursday.
The extreme heat will persist in the region for the rest of the week, according to the National Weather Service. The record for most consecutive days where temperatures were 95 degrees and up in Portland is six days– this heat wave could break or tie that record.
Heat alerts continue to be in effect for parts of California, Nevada and Idaho as their temperatures are expected to threaten records until Saturday.
Oregon’s Department of Emergency Management opened up misting stations and overnight cooling shelters on Tuesday to help residents deal with the dangerous heat.
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown declared a state of emergency on Tuesday for 25 of the state’s counties until July 31.
“With many parts of Oregon facing a high heat wave, it is critical that every level of government has the resources they need to help keep Oregonians safe and healthy,” Brown said in a statement. “I encourage everyone to take proactive steps to keep themselves and their families safe, including drinking plenty of fluids, taking advantage of cooling centers, and checking in on neighbors, friends, and loved ones.”
According to a 2021 study, heat waves in the Pacific Northwest would be “virtually impossible” without human-caused climate change.
Smoke from the Oak Fire near Yosemite National Park, which has burned more than 18,000 acres, is spreading into Northern California and southern Oregon. The fire, combined with the heat wave, is causing very poor air quality in the area.
ABC News’ Julia Jacobo contributed to this report.
“WUBBA LUBBA DUB-DUB!” The absurdist, Emmy-winning animated series Rick and Morty will make its anticipated return for season six on Adult Swim on Sunday, September 4 at 11 p.m.
The show, co-created by Dan Harmon and Justin Roiland, the latter of whom voices its titular leads, has snagged a pair of Emmys and was just nominated for a third. The series has become “more than a hit show” but “truly a global phenomenon,” according to Michael Ouweleen, president of Adult Swim and Cartoon Network.
Adult Swim points out that the series, about the universe’s most brilliant scientist Rick Sanchez and his ever-awkward grandson Morty Smith, has been viewed over 10 billion times all over the world, across broadcast airings, digital and streaming.
Series writer Mike McCann recently explained what it takes to bring the show to life. “Rick and Morty is really hard to write! Like, I don’t know if you guys have noticed, but it takes a while to make because it’s just really complex. And like, when you’re sitting down to write that show, it takes a lot of work!”
To get fans ready for the big launch, Adidas has teamed up with Adult Swim for an R&M-themed sneaker called the X SPEEDPORTAL.
Colored in the same day-glo green as the fluid in Rick’s dimensional hopping portal gun, the kicks promise to “open the gateway to multidimensional speed,” and give wearers “light-speed sprints and physics-defying sidesteps.” They come in both sneaker form and in cleats — or as people who call soccer “football” refer to them, “boots.”
Comic books might usually cover superheroes, but this one is all about a music superstar.
Stevie Nicks is the focus of a new 22-page comic book detailing the rocker’s life and career from TidalWave Comics.
The comic book is part of the brand’s “Female Force” series, which highlights impactful women from all around the world. As per its description, it explores Nicks’ “passion and unrelenting drive to succeed as an artist.”
Michael Frizell penned the story, with illustrations by artist Ramon Salas.
“There’s a popular meme that talks about how Taylor Swift writes sad songs about her exes, but Stevie Nicks makes her exes sing songs she wrote about them explaining how horrible they are, and every time I see it, I laugh,” notes Frizell. “Stevie’s fearlessness makes her a rock legend and explains her staying power and popularity.”
You can check out a preview of Female Force: Stevie Nicks at Tidal Wave Comics’ Twitter page.
Female Force: Stevie Nicks is available now in both print and digital formats.
Sister Kelly Williams pictured with her roommates, who are also becoming nuns, in Chicago, Illinois. – ABC News
(NEW YORK) — Across the United States, young adults are becoming less religious.
A 2018 and 2019 Pew Research Center survey found that the number of Americans who identify as Christians has dropped 12% over the past decade. The group who described themselves as Catholic, in particular, has also shrunk, leaving a crisis in the Catholic sisterhood. Nuns are growing older and there is a concern that there will be fewer young people looking to join the sisterhood.
According to a recent study, less than 1% of nuns in America are under 40 and the average sister is 80 years old.
Sister Joanne Persch just turned 88. She said that many of her friends who joined her in service in the early 1950s have died. Throughout the painful pandemic and societal upheaval, she said there is still a great need for nuns in America.
“Well, I think it’s a big mistake to say that religious life is dying,” said Persch. “And I look around me in our community and I see such vibrant, such life. It’s changing and growing into something we can’t even imagine.”
In 2022, there were reportedly fewer than 42,000 nuns in America, which is a 76% decline over 50 years. At the rate sisters are disappearing, one estimate said that there will be fewer than 1,000 nuns left in the United States by 2042, according to the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate.
Sister Kelly Williams is working toward becoming one of the few nuns still left in the life. She is 34 years old and started her journey nine years ago. She said people are often surprised that she is so “normal.”
“I think I’ve had people be surprised that I like to listen to music and not all of it is religious,” said Williams, who added that she and her roommates enjoy watching Netflix and Hulu together. “I don’t go to bars like I would when I was in college.”
Williams is a former college admissions counselor who lives in Chicago with four other sisters who are close to her age. She expects to take her final vows in a few years and officially become a Catholic sister with the Sisters of Mercy – one of the largest religious orders for Catholic women.
“God’s got big plans,” said Williams. “And hopefully, we follow them.”
One thing Williams said she won’t be giving up is her Facebook, Instagram or TikTok accounts. She is using social media to help spread awareness of the lifestyle of young nuns.
“I started making videos every Saturday… It’s called Saturday Sister Surprise and every Saturday I hide something in my hair and I pull it out. It has been religious items and silly items,” said Williams. “It’s something that has brought a lot of joy to people.”
She said she was drawn to the stability of the church and felt a “call” to be a part of it.
“It was a place where you could be educated, was a place where all of these things could happen for you and I think there are so many options that are available,” said Williams. “But you have to want this. This is about God’s call and responding to that.”
Williams and her roommates said that young people today are resistant to the structure of religious life and many have been put off by the scandals of the Catholic Church, which they struggle to work past themselves. They said that they pray every day for their future as a sisterhood and ask for strength that more young women will answer the call.
“The American memory is attached to the nun of yesteryear. It’s very hard for us now to kind of be breaking through those stereotypes that were established,” said Sister Jane Aseltine. “We are still fighting that battle as younger, religious women to say this is what a typical American nun looks like in today’s world.”
