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As NPR's senior national correspondent, Linda Wertheimer travels the country and the globe for NPR News, bringing her unique insights and wealth of experience to bear on the day's top news stories.

President Trump named Fox News personality Jeanine Pirro as the interim top prosecutor in Washington, D.C., to replace Ed Martin.

Lara Downes is among the foremost American pianists of her generation, a trailblazer both on and off the stage, whose musical roadmap seeks inspiration from the legacies of history, family and collective memory. As a chart-topping recording artist, a powerfully charismatic performer, a curator and tastemaker, Downes is recognized as a cultural visionary on the national arts scene.

The lawsuit from three senior and lauded FBI agents at the bureau says the Trump administration demanded loyalty for those staying at the bureau.

As we count down to the new year, we asked our readers what they thought were the top political stories of 2021. Here's what they picked.

All summer, a wide range of hits were in the running for the biggest songs of the season — country singalongs, rap diss tracks, pop kiss-offs and rock epics. But two took the race down to the wire.

In the state's 2nd Congressional District, redistricting placed two incumbent Republican congressmen in a primary battle.

Millions are preparing to fill out their NCAA tournament brackets, pondering deep questions such as, "Can Kentucky really run the table?" and "Which No. 5 seed will beat a No. 12 in the first round?"

Santa Barbara Permaculture Network Eco Hero Award
An Evening with John & Nancy Jack Todd, Ecological Design Pioneers. Come and be inspired by a life of Innovation!

Ecological design goes way beyond any other field of design. It taps deep into Nature’s operating instructions, organizing knowledge & ecosystems to serve human needs without despoiling the planet.

Please join Santa Barbara Permaculture Network as we celebrate our third annual Eco Hero Award honoring John & Nancy Jack Todd, pioneers in the ecological design movement.

Beginning in the late 1960’s this unique and amazingly productive husband and wife team has shared a partnership journey over five decades, committed to the emerging field of ecological design, that uses human ingenuity to design a future in balance with nature, while healing broken ecosystems damaged historically, and by modern industrial society.

Today John & Nancy operate Ocean Arks International, a nonprofit research and outreach organization founded in 1982. Ocean Ark’s stated mission is “to create planetary healing through promoting ecological literacy and the dissemination of vital eco-technologies”, with projects focused on the restoration of the world’s oceans and fresh waters, using the tools of nature to heal toxic waste sites, oil spills, leaking landfills and severely damaged waterways.

The Santa Barbara Permaculture Network Eco Hero Award honors those individuals who have committed themselves to work in service of the planet and its inhabitants for more than thirty years, with actual solutions and concrete ways forward that benefit many, often on a global scale, while demonstrating pathways forward for future generations. Audiences will learn what inspired John & Nancy, how they made their projects happen, and what challenges they faced along the way—with time for the audience to ask questions, especially encouraging youth attending to interact.

Past recipients of the Santa Barbara Permaculture Network Eco Hero Award include John D. Liu, Paul Stamets, and Louie Schwartzberg. We are honored to have John & Nancy Jack Todd join us in person as recipients for the 2023 Eco Hero Award. A reception follows in the Lobero courtyard for all ticket holders.

The event takes place at the Lobero Theatre on Friday, March 17, from 6:30 pm – 9 pm, tickets on sale at Lobero Tickets (fees apply), 805-963-0761; Lobero.com. TICKETS $10, $20, $40, & Friends of Eco Hero $100
For more information, www.sbpermaculture.org.

Shakespeare’s “Much Ado About Nothing” is one of the most famous “rom-coms” of all time, with its budding romances, meddling villains, potential catastrophes, and witty banter between enemies-to-lovers Benedick and Beatrice. Elings Park presents the award-winning ensemble Naked Shakes in this popular comedy for two outdoor performances in Godric Grove on Friday, September 6 at 5 p.m. and Sunday, September 8 at 3 p.m.

Performed in their hallmark style of minimal props and simple costumes, Naked Shakes puts the focus on the abilities of the actors and the brilliant words of the Bard. Director Irwin Appel’s original production is filled with music, dance, and revelry, and is scored by a live jazz quintet.

Advance general admission tickets are $17 for adults, $13 for teens and seniors, and free for children under 12. Available online at www.elingspark.org. Tickets will be sold at the door, as available, at $20 for adults and $15 for teens and seniors.

“Naked Shakes productions are ‘unplugged,’ exciting, and accessible to audiences of all ages,” says Dean Noble, executive director of Elings Park. “The young actors are energetic, nimble, and whole-heartedly committed to conveying both the humor and heartache in this beloved farce.”

This is the second of two Shakespeare plays presented this summer in the Park’s scenic Godric Grove amphitheater. Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum one of their signature production of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” on Saturday, August 17 was sold-out.

“There’s nothing quite like experiencing these wonderful plays in the open air and under the oaks in Godric Grove,” adds Noble. “We’d love the Park to become a destination for summer Shakespeare.”

Now in its 19th year, Naked Shakes is a UCSB ensemble that annually produces a Shakespearean play under the direction of Professor Irwin Appel. Critically acclaimed and award-winning, they not only perform on campus but have transported productions to the Southwest Shakespeare Company at Taliesin West (Scottsdale, Arizona), the Shakespeare Center of Los Angeles, Westmont College, and Center Stage Theater in downtown Santa Barbara. In the summer of 2023, they performed in Italy’s Verona Shakespeare Fringe Festival, performing “The Death of Kings,” their acclaimed adaptation of Shakespeare’s history plays. Visit www.theaterdance.ucsb.edu/performance-programs/naked-shakes.

“Whether you are a Shakespeare lover or you have never seen a live theater production in your life, Naked Shakes’ ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ is for you,” says Appel. “Sit back, relax and prepare to laugh and cry your way through this wild ride and deeply emotional and joyous adventure.”