At a lunch for Tony Award nominees last month, veteran theater producer Ron Simons looked around and smiled. It seemed appropriate that the gathering was held at The Rainbow Room. 

“I can guarantee you I have not seen this many people of color represented across all categories of the Tony Awards,” he recalled. “It was a diverse room. I was so uplifted and impressed by that.” 

For the first full season since the death of George Floyd reignited a conversation about race and representation in America, Broadway responded with one of its most diverse Tony slates yet. 

Multiple Black artists were nominated in every single performance category, including three of five featured actors in a musical, four of six featured actresses in a play, two of seven leading actors in a play and three of five leading actresses in a play. There are 16 Black performance nods out of 33 slots — a very healthy 48%. 

By comparison, at the 2016 Tonys — the breakout season that included the diverse “Hamilton,” “Eclipsed” and “The Color Purple” revival — 14 of the 40 acting nominees for plays and musicals or 35% were actors of color. 

“Let’s hope that the diversity that we saw in the season continues to be the norm for Broadway, that this isn’t just an anomaly or a blip in reaction to what we’ve been through, but just a reset,” said Lynn Nottage, the first writer to be nominated for both a play (“Clyde’s”) and musical (“MJ”) in a single season. 

The new crop of nominees also boasts more women and people of color in design categories, such as first-time nominees Palmer Hefferan for sound design of a play (“The Skin of Our Teeth”), Yi Zhao for lighting design of a play (“The Skin of Our Teeth”) and Sarafina Bush for costume design of a play (“for colored girls who have considered suicide/when the rainbow is enuf”). 

Other firsts this season included L Morgan Lee of “A Strange Loop” becoming the first out trans performer to be nominated for a Tony. Adam Rigg, scenic designer of “The Skin of Our Teeth,” became the first out agender (does not identify with a particular gender) designer nominated, and Toby Marlow, “Six” co-creator is the first out nonbinary composer-lyricist nominated. 

Eleven performers — including Jaquel Spivey from “A Strange Loop,” Myles Frost in “MJ” and Kara Young from “Clyde’s” — received a nod for their Broadway debut performances and 10 designers received nominations for their Broadway debuts, as did creators such as “A Strange Loop” playwright Michael R. Jackson and “Paradise Square” co-book writer Christina Anderson. 

“I’m very, very excited about all the new voices we’re hearing, all the new new writers who are represented on Broadway for the first time,” said A.J. Shively, an actor nominated for “Paradise Square.” “I really hope that trend continues.” 

Perhaps nowhere is the diversity more apparent than in the oldest play currently on Broadway. “Macbeth,” directed by Sam Gold, has a Black Lady Macbeth in Ruth Negga, a woman taking on a traditional male role (Amber Gray plays Banquo), a non-binary actor (Asia Kate Dillon) and disability representation (Michael Patrick Thornton). 

“If all the world’s a stage, our stage certainly is the world. I’m really proud to be up there with all the actors,” says Thornton, who uses his wheelchair as a cunning asset to play the savvy nobleman Lennox. 

But while representation was seen across Broadway this season so was an invisible virus that didn’t care. The various mutations of COVID-19 sickened actors in waves and starved many box offices of critical funds. Skittish theater-goers who returned often had an appetite for only established, comfort shows. 

Several of the Black-led productions came up short, including “Thoughts of a Colored Man,” “Chicken and Biscuits,” and “Pass Over.” They debuted in the fall, just as Broadway was slowly restarting and audiences were most fearful. “Thoughts of a Colored Man” closed early because it didn’t have enough healthy actors, at one point enlisting the playwright himself to get onstage and play a role. 

One of the most painful blows was a revival of Ntozake Shange’s “for colored girls,” which struggled to find an audience. The cast of seven Black women included deaf actor Alexandria Wailes and, until recently, a pregnant Kenita R. Miller. It earned strong notices and a whopping seven Tony nominations. But it will close this week. 

“In past seasons, had there been a play with seven Tony nominations and this bevy of glowing reviews, the show would have gone on for quite a while,” says Simons, the lead producer. “There’s an audience for this show. That’s not the problem. The problem is getting the audience into the theater to see the show.” 

Despite a glut in inventory and not enough consumers, there were clear game-changers, like “A Strange Loop,” a musical about a gay Black playwright, that captured a leading 11 nominations, besting establishment options like a Hugh Jackman-led “The Music Man.” Broadway veterans agree that extraordinary storytelling was available for those hardy souls who bought tickets. 

“I’m really proud to be a part of one of the voices of Broadway this year,” said Anna D. Shapiro, who directed Tracy Letts’ Tony-nominated play “The Minutes,” which exposes delusions at the dark heart of American history. ” I am so impressed by the vitality and the dynamism.” 

Broadway data often suggest improvements one year, then a drop off the next. Take the 2013-14 season, which was rich with roles for African Americans, including “A Raisin in the Sun” starring Denzel Washington, Audra McDonald channeling Billie Holiday in “Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill” and the dance show “After Midnight.” 

There were also African Americans in nontraditional roles, like James Monroe Iglehart as the Genie in “Aladdin,” Nikki M. James and Kyle Scatliffe in “Les Miserables,” and Norm Lewis becoming the first Black Phantom on Broadway in “The Phantom of the Opera.” 

That season, Black actors represented 21% of all roles. But the next season, the number fell to 9%. 

Camille A. Brown, who this season together with Lileana Blain-Cruz became only the second and third Black women to be nominated for best direction of a play, has weathered the ups and downs. 

“My thing is, let’s see what the next year and the year after that and the year after that look like?” she says. “I think the landscape was definitely a challenge, especially after George Floyd and the events that happened after that. But this is only the first season out after all of that stuff happened. So let’s see if it keeps going and keeps evolving and keeps progressing.” 

Simons is optimistic the gains this year will last and celebrates that, at the very least, a group of diverse actors got their Broadway credits this season. He predicts more Tony winners of color than ever before. 

“Even though the box office hurt all of our feelings, it really is a celebration because never have we seen this kind of diversity happen on Broadway,” he says. “It is a rare year and it is a rare year for both the good and the bad.” 
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 Jennifer Lopez made an emotional speech about how believers and skeptics contributed to her success as she accepted a career achievement honor at the MTV Movie & TV Awards on Sunday. 

“I want to thank the people who gave me joy and the ones who broke my heart — the ones who were true and the ones who lied to me,” said Lopez, who nabbed this year’s Generation Award for actors whose diverse contributions have made them household names. She also took home best song — a new category — for the track “On My Way” from the “Marry Me” soundtrack. 

MTV’s youth-focused celebration of film and TV offered a lighter, breezier awards show with 26 categories in gender-neutral categories such as best villain, best kiss and new category “here for the hookup.” Hosted by Vanessa Hudgens, the ceremony returned to a live format after being pre-recorded for several years. 

Lopez shed tears as she thanked fans, her longtime manager and children for “teaching me to love,” bringing the audience to their feet at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, California. 

“I want to thank the people who gave me this life,” said Lopez, 52, later adding, “You’re only as good as the people who you work with. But if you’re lucky, they make you better. I’ve been very lucky in that regard.”

Lopez’s first breakthrough came as a dancer on the 1990s sketch comedy series “In Living Color.” She pursued an acting career and landed a leading role in “Selena” in 1997. She would go on to appear in such films including “Anaconda,” “Out of Sight,” “The Wedding Planner,” “Hustlers” and her latest, “Marry Me.” 

As a singer, Lopez has earned success on the pop and Latin charts with multiple hit songs and albums. She released her multi-hit debut “On the 6” in 1999 and topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart with songs like “If You Had My Love,” “All I Have” and the remixes of “I’m Real” and “Ain’t It Funny.” 

And in 2020, Lopez performed during the Super Bowl halftime show alongside Shakira. 

“Spider-Man: No Way Home” entered the awards as the leading nominee with seven. It took home best movie, and the film’s star Tom Holland won for best performance in a movie. With almost $1.9 billion earned at the box office, it was the biggest film of the year and a fan favorite, but was largely overlooked by the major awards shows. 

Zendaya won for best performance in a show for her role in “Euphoria,” which came away with best show. The HBO series also won here for the hookup. 

Early in the broadcast, 19-year-old singer Olivia Rodrigo won best music documentary for her project “Olivia Rodrigo: driving home 2 u.” Rodrigo, who won three Grammys this year including best new artist, spoke about the importance of creating the film, which involves a road trip, live performances and reflections on her debut album “Sour.” 

“I made ‘driving home 2 u’ for the fans, especially those who couldn’t come to see me on tour,” Rodrigo said. 

Jack Black also received a career achievement award, Comic Genius. He ran onstage and seemed almost out of breath before giving his acceptance speech. 

“I need a little blast of oxygen,” he said before rattling off several films he starred in, like “School of Rock” and two “Jumanji” films. He played in other comedies including “Shallow Hal,” “Tropic Thunder” and the animated “Kung Fu Panda” franchise films, where Black voiced the main character. 

“Comedic genius. C’mon are you kidding? For what?” he said. “I don’t deserve this, but I’ll take it.” 

The ceremony kicked off with “Loki” star Sophia Di Martino winning breakthrough performance for her role as Sylvie on the Disney Plus television series. After the actor claimed her trophy, she talked about being 9 months pregnant when she was offered the role, and her baby being just 3 months old when she started filming. 

“It’s been quite the journey, so this really means a lot to me,” she said. “Thank you to the audience. It’s all for you. Thank you for letting Sylvie into your imaginations.” 

Daniel Radcliffe won best villain for his portrayal of a billionaire in the adventure comedy “The Lost City.” 

Diplo and Swae Lee performed “Tupelo Shuffle” from the upcoming “Elvis” biopic from director Baz Luhrmann. 
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Alec John Such, the bassist and a founding member of the iconic rock band Bon Jovi, has died. He was 70.

The group on Sunday announced the death of Such, the New Jersey band’s bassist from 1983 to 1994. No details on when or how Such died were immediately available. A publicist for singer-songwriter Jon Bon Jovi didn’t immediately respond to messages.

“He was an original,” Bon Jovi wrote in a post on Twitter. “As a founding member of Bon Jovi, Alec was integral to the formation of the band.”

Bon Jovi credited Such for bringing the band together, noting that he was a childhood friend of drummer Tico Torres and brought guitarist and songwriter Richie Sambora to see the band perform. Such had played with Sambora in a band called Message.

The Yonkers, New York-born Such was a veteran figure in the thriving New Jersey music scene that helped spawn Bon Jovi. As manager of the Hunka Bunka Ballroom in Sayreville, New Jersey, Such booked Jon Bon Jovi & The Wild Ones before joining the singer-songwriter’s band. He played with Bon Jovi through the group’s heyday in the 1980s.

Such departed the band in 1994, when he was replaced by bassist Hugh McDonald. He later rejoined the band for its induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2018.

“When Jon Bon Jovi called me up and asked me to be in his band many years ago, I soon realized how serious he was and he had a vision that he wanted to bring us to,” said Such at the Hall of Fame induction. “And I am only too happy to have been a part of that vision.”  
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Narendra Modi rose from his chair and walked briskly towards the podium to deliver another nighttime address to the nation. It was expected the speech would include a rare message of interfaith harmony in the country where religious tensions have risen under his rule.

The Indian prime minister was speaking from the historic Mughal-era Red Fort in New Delhi, and the event marked the 400th birth anniversary celebrations of Guru Tegh Bahadur, the ninth Sikh guru who is remembered for championing religious freedoms for all.

The occasion and the venue, in many ways, were appropriate.

Instead, Modi chose the April event to turn back the clock and remind people of India’s most despised Muslim ruler who has been dead for more than 300 years.

“Aurangzeb severed many heads, but he could not shake our faith,” Modi said during his address.

His invocation of the 17th century Mughal emperor was not a mere blip.

Aurangzeb Alamgir remained buried deep in the annals of India’s complex history. The country’s modern rulers are now resurrecting him as a brutal oppressor of Hindus and a rallying cry for Hindu nationalists who believe India must be salvaged from the taint of the so-called Muslim invaders.

As tensions between Hindus and Muslims have mounted, the scorn for Aurangzeb has grown, and politicians from India’s right have invoked him like never before. It often comes with a cautionary warning: India’s Muslims should disassociate themselves from him as retribution for his alleged crimes.

“For today’s Hindu nationalists, Aurangzeb is a dog whistle for hating all Indian Muslims,” said Audrey Truschke, historian and author of the book “Aurangzeb: The Man and the Myth.”

Hating and disparaging Muslim rulers, particularly Mughals, is distinctive to India’s Hindu nationalists, who for decades have strived to recreate officially secular India into a Hindu nation.

They argue that Muslim rulers like Aurangzeb destroyed Hindu culture, forced religious conversions, desecrated temples and imposed harsh taxes on non-Muslims, even though some historians say such stories are exaggerated. Popular thought among nationalists traces the origin of Hindu-Muslim tensions back to medieval times, when seven successive Muslim dynasties made India their home, until each were swept aside when their time passed.

This belief had led them on a quest to redeem India’s Hindu past, to right the perceived wrongs suffered over centuries. And Aurangzeb is central to this sentiment.

Aurangzeb was the last powerful Mughal emperor who ascended to the throne in the mid-17th century after imprisoning his father and having his older brother killed. Unlike other Mughals, who ruled over a vast empire in South Asia for more than 300 years and enjoy a relatively uncontested legacy, Aurangzeb is, almost undoubtedly, one of the most hated men in Indian history.

Richard Eaton, a professor at the University of Arizona, who is widely regarded as an authority on pre-modern India, said that even though Aurangzeb destroyed temples, available records show it was a little more than a dozen and not thousands, as has been widely believed. This was done for political, not religious reasons, Eaton said, adding that the Muslim emperor also extended safety and security to people from all religions.

“In a word, he was a man of his own time, not of ours,” said Eaton, adding that the Mughal emperor has been reduced to “a comic book villain.”

But for Aurangzeb’s detractors, he embodied evil and was nothing but a religious bigot.

Right-wing historian Makkhan Lal, whose books on Indian history have been read by millions of high school students, said ascribing political motives alone to Aurangzeb’s acts is akin to the “betrayal of India’s glorious past.”

It is a claim made by many historians who support Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party, also known as the BJP, or its ideological mothership, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, a radical Hindu movement that has been widely accused of stoking religious hatred with aggressively anti-Muslim views. They say India’s history has been systematically whitewashed by far-left distortionists, mainly to cut off Indians — mostly Hindus — from their civilizational past.

“Aurangzeb razed down temples and it only shows his hate for Hindus and Hinduism,” said Lal.

The debate has spilled over from academia to angry social media posts and noisy TV shows, where India’s modern Muslims have often been insulted and called the “progeny of Aurangzeb.”

Last month, when a Muslim lawmaker visited Aurangzeb’s tomb to offer prayers, a senior leader from Modi’s party questioned his parentage.

“Why would you visit the grave of Aurangzeb who destroyed this country,” Hemanta Biswa Sarma, northeastern Assam state’s top elected official, thundered during a television interview. Referring to the lawmaker, he said: “If Aurangzeb is your father, then I won’t object.”

The insults have led to more anxieties among the country’s significant Muslim minority who in recent years have been at the receiving end of violence from Hindu nationalists, emboldened by a prime minister who has mostly stayed mum on such attacks since he was first elected in 2014.

Modi’s party denies using the Mughal emperor’s name to denigrate Muslims. It also says it is merely trying to out the truth.

“India’s history has been manipulated and distorted to appease minorities. We are dismantling that ecosystem of lies,” said Gopal Krishna Agarwal, a spokesman of the BJP.

The dislike for Aurangzeb extends far beyond Hindu nationalists. Many Sikhs remember him as a man who ordered the execution of their ninth guru in 1675. The commonly held belief is that the religious leader was executed for not converting to Islam.

Some argue that Modi’s invocation of Aurangzeb’s name at the Sikh guru’s birth anniversary in April serves only one purpose: to further widen anti-Muslim sentiments.

“In so doing, the Hindu right advances one of their key goals, namely maligning India’s Muslim minority population in order to try to justify majoritarian oppression and violence against them,” said Truschke, the historian.

Despite referencing Aurangzeb routinely, Hindu nationalists have simultaneously tried to erase him from the public sphere.

In 2015, New Delhi’s famous Aurangzeb Road was renamed after protests from Modi’s party leaders. Since then, some Indian state governments have rewritten school textbooks to deemphasize him. Last month, the mayor of northern Agra city described Aurangzeb as a “terrorist,” whose traces should be expunged from all public places. A politician called for his tomb to be levelled, prompting authorities to shut it to the public.

A senior administration official, who didn’t want to be named because of government policy, compared efforts to erase Aurangzeb’s name to the removal of Confederate symbols and statues — viewed as racist relics — in the United States.

“What is wrong if people want to talk about the past and right historical wrongs? In fact, why should there be places named after a zealot who left behind a bitter legacy?” the official asked.

This sentiment, fast resonating across India, has already touched a raw nerve.

A 17th-century mosque in Varanasi, Hinduism’s holiest city, has emerged as the latest flashpoint between Hindus and Muslims. A court case will decide whether the site would be given to Hindus, who claim it was built on a temple destroyed on the orders of Aurangzeb.

For decades, Hindu nationalists have laid claim to several famous mosques, arguing they are built on the ruins of prominent temples. Many such cases are pending in courts.

Critics say it could lead to long legal battles, like that of the Babri mosque, which was ripped apart by Hindu mobs with spades, crowbars and bare hands in 1992. The demolition set off massive violence across India and left more than 2,000 people, mostly Muslims, dead. In 2019, India’s Supreme Court gave the site of the mosque to Hindus.

Such worries are also felt by historians like Truschke.

She said the “demonization” of Aurangzeb and India’s Muslim kings is in “bad faith” and promotes “historical revisionism,” which is often backed by threats and violence.

“Hindu nationalists do not think about the real historical Aurangzeb,” said Truschke. “Rather, they invent the villain that they want to hate.”
…

Every year thousands of visitors to Las Vegas can’t help falling in love — at least long enough to get married by an Elvis impersonator.

But the company that controls the rights to the King’s likeness has sparked outrage in Sin City by cracking down wedding chapels offering Elvis-themed nuptials.

Authentic Brands Group, which bought a controlling stake in Elvis Presley’s estate in 2013, last month sent cease-and-desist letters to companies offering the kitschy weddings.

The move triggered angry responses from Elvis impersonators, chapel owners, and even the mayor of Las Vegas, who called for a little more open conversation — and less legal action — from the group.

“Elvis Presley long called Las Vegas his home and his name has become synonymous with Las Vegas weddings,” Jason Whaley, president of the Las Vegas Wedding Chamber of Commerce, told AFP.

“The Vegas Wedding Chamber shares a concern that many of our chapels and impersonators livelihoods are being targeted, especially as many are still trying to recover financially from the hurdles we all endured with Covid shutdowns.”

ABG on Thursday apologized for its initial approach, saying it was committed to protecting Presley’s legacy.

“We are sorry that recent communication with a small number of Las Vegas based chapels caused confusion and concern. That was never our intention,” the company said in a statement to AFP.

“We are working with the chapels to ensure that the usage of Elvis’ name, image and likeness are in keeping with his legacy.”

It added: “From tribute artists and impersonators to chapels and fan clubs, each and every one of these groups help to keep Elvis relevant for new generations of fans.”

But a day earlier, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that ABG was now offering chapels financial “partnerships,” including annual licensing deals to continue business as usual.

“That is their solution, to pay $20,000 a year to do what we’ve been doing for the past nine years,” said Kayla Collins, co-owner of the Las Vegas Elvis Wedding Chapel.

“This was not on the table a few days ago. Frankly, I think this thing going to the public has changed their minds.”

‘Elvis Pink Caddy’

The move comes weeks before the release of Baz Luhrmann’s new big-screen biopic “Elvis” — a large-scale Warner Bros production expected to boost interest in the singer.

Elvis-themed weddings have been a lucrative business in Las Vegas since the 1970s.

Packages today run as high as $1,600 for the Elvis Pink Caddy Luxury Model Wedding Package, which offers couples the chance to be driven up the aisle of the Viva Las Vegas Wedding Chapel by Elvis in a 1964 pink Cadillac convertible.

Weddings are a $2.5 billion industry in Las Vegas, according to the Wedding Chamber of Commerce.

But while Elvis musical tribute acts are freely allowed under Nevada law, businesses using Presley’s likeness simply to attract publicity and customers are not protected.

Harry Shahoian, one of dozens of Elvis impersonators in the city, who officiates at the Graceland Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas, told the Review-Journal that people just “love to be married by Elvis.”

“I did the whole day Sunday, 22 ceremonies. I’ve done more than 30 in one day, 100 in a week, all of those Elvis-themed.”
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Afghan and Pakistani artists held a protest in front of press club in Peshawar, Pakistan, against the crackdown on Afghan artists who fled their country after the Taliban’s takeover. Muska Safi has more from Peshawar in this report, narrated by Nazrana Yousufzai. Contributors: Nazrana Yousufzai, Roshan Noorzai
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The Special Olympics has dropped a coronavirus vaccine mandate for its games in Orlando after Florida moved to fine the organization $27.5 million for violating a state law against such rules. 

Republican Governor Ron DeSantis on Friday announced the organization had removed the requirement for its competition in the state, which is scheduled to run June 5-12. 

“In Florida, we want all of them to be able to compete. We do not think it’s fair or just to be marginalizing some of these athletes based on a decision that has no bearing on their ability to compete with honor or integrity,” DeSantis said at a news conference in Orlando. 

The Florida health department notified the Special Olympics of the fine in a letter Thursday that said the organization would be fined $27.5 million for 5,500 violations of state law for requiring proof of coronavirus vaccination for attendees or participants. 

Florida law bars businesses from requiring documentation of a COVID-19 vaccination. DeSantis has strongly opposed vaccine mandates and other virus policies endorsed by the federal government. 

In a statement on its website, the Special Olympics said people who were registered but unable to participate because of the mandate can now attend. 

 
…

Harini Logan was eliminated from the Scripps National Spelling Bee once, then reinstated. She missed four words in a grueling standoff against Vikram Raju, including one that would have given her the title.

In the first-ever lightning-round tiebreaker, Harini finally claimed the trophy.

The 13-year-old eighth grade student from San Antonio, Texas, who competed in the last fully in-person bee three years ago and endured the pandemic to make it back, spelled 21 words correctly during a 90-second spell-off, beating Vikram by six.

Harini, one of the best-known spellers entering the bee and a crowd favorite for her poise and positivity, wins more than $50,000 in cash and prizes.

Perhaps no champion has ever had more final-round flubs, but Harini was no less deserving.

She is the fifth Scripps champion to be coached by Grace Walters, a former speller, fellow Texan and student at Rice University who is considering bowing out of the coaching business. If so, she will depart on top.

The key moment came during the bee’s much-debated multiple-choice vocabulary round, when Harini defined the word “pullulation” as the nesting of mating birds. Scripps said the correct answer was the swarming of bees.

But wait!

“We did a little sleuthing after you finished, which is what our job is, to make sure we’ve made the right decision,” head judge Mary Brooks said to Harini. “We (did) a little deep dive in that word and actually the answer you gave to that word is considered correct, so we’re going to reinstate you.”

From there, Harini breezed into the finals against Vikram. They each spelled two words correctly. Then Scripps brought out the toughest words of the night.

Both misspelled. Then Vikram missed again and Harini got “sereh” right, putting her one word away from the title. The word was “drimys,” and she got it wrong.

Two more rounds, two more misspelled words by each, and Scripps brought out the podium and buzzer for the lightning round that all the finalists had practiced for in the mostly empty ballroom hours earlier.

Harini was faster and sharper throughout, and the judges’ final tally confirmed her victory.

The last fully in-person version of the bee had no tiebreaker and ended in an eight-way tie. The 2020 bee was canceled because of the pandemic, and in 2021 it was mostly virtual, with only 11 finalists gathering in Florida as Zaila Avant-garde became the first Black American champion.

The changes continued this year with Scripps ending its deal with longtime partner ESPN and producing its own telecast for its networks ION and Bounce, with actor and literacy advocate LeVar Burton as host. The transition was bumpy at times, with long and uneven commercial breaks that broke up the action and audio glitches that exposed the inner workings of the broadcast to the in-person crowd.

The bee itself was leaner, with fewer than half the participants it had in 2019 because of sponsors dropping out and the end of a wild-card program. And spellers had to answer vocabulary questions live on stage for the first time, resulting in several surprising eliminations during the semifinals.

Harini bowing out on a vocabulary word was briefly the biggest shock of all. Then she was back on stage, and at the end, she was still there.
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In Mogadishu, a group of young filmmakers are hoping to take their vision to the world. VOA’s Abdulkadir Zubeyr reports.
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Queen Elizabeth II will make two appearances on the Buckingham Palace balcony on Thursday, kicking off four days of public events to mark her historic Platinum Jubilee.

The extent of the 96-year-old monarch’s involvement in the celebrations for her record-breaking 70 years on the throne has been a source of speculation for months.

She has cut back drastically on her public appearances since last year because of difficulties standing and walking — and a bout of COVID-19.

But royal officials confirmed that she would take the salute of mounted troops from the balcony after a military parade called Trooping the Colour.

The centuries-old ceremony to officially mark the sovereign’s birthday has previously seen the queen take the salute on horseback herself.

Her 73-year-old son and heir, Prince Charles, will step in this year, supported by his sister, Princess Anne, 71, and his eldest son, Prince William, 39.

Joining senior royals watching the display of military precision will be Charles’ younger son, Prince Harry, and his wife, Meghan, on a rare visit from California, Buckingham Palace confirmed.

But the queen’s disgraced second son, Prince Andrew, 62, is not expected to join them.

She will return to the balcony later to watch a flyby of military aircraft, including iconic models from World War II, the palace said.

At nightfall, the queen will be at Windsor Castle, west of London, to take part in a ceremony to light more than 3,000 beacons across the country and the Commonwealth of 54 nations that she heads.

Parties, parades, concerts

 

Elizabeth was a 25-year-old princess when she succeeded her father, King George VI in 1952, bringing a rare touch of glamour to a battered nation still enduring food rations after World War II.

Seventy years on, she is now the only monarch most Britons have ever known, becoming an enduring figurehead through often troubled times.

Britain’s first and very likely only Platinum Jubilee will see street parties, pop concerts and parades until Sunday in potentially the last major public celebration of the queen’s long reign.

It has not yet been confirmed if she will attend a thanksgiving service at St Paul’s Cathedral on Friday, while her planned attendance at horse racing showcase The Derby on Saturday is off.

She could yet put in a final appearance — again from the palace balcony — on Sunday, at the climax of a huge public pageant involving 6,000 performers.

In a message, the queen thanked everyone involved in organizing the community events in Britain and around the world.

“I know that many happy memories will be created at these festive occasions,” she said.

“I continue to be inspired by the goodwill shown to me, and hope that the coming days will provide an opportunity to reflect on all that has been achieved during the last 70, as we look to the future with confidence and enthusiasm.”

Attention turning to succession

The jubilee, held against a backdrop of rising inflation that has left many Britons struggling, is being seen not just as respite for the public after two years scarred by the pandemic but also for the royals.

Harry, 37, and Meghan, 40, caused shockwaves in early 2020 by moving to North America, from where they have publicly criticized royal life.

In April last year, she lost her husband of 73 years, Prince Philip, and was forced to sit alone at his funeral because of coronavirus restrictions.

Since then, she has struggled with her health and also the fallout from Andrew’s links to the convicted sex offenders Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.

Andrew, who in February settled a U.S. civil claim for sexual assault, has effectively been fired from his royal duties.

Attention is increasingly turning to the succession, and the monarchy’s future at home and in the 14 other Commonwealth countries where the queen is also head of state.

Her approval rating among Britons remains high at 75%, according to a poll by YouGov published Wednesday, but Charles is only at 50%.

A total of 62% still want a monarchy, although younger people are split, with 33% in favor, and 31% wanting a republic.

Only 39% said they thought there would still be a monarch in 100 years’ time.
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