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Cirque du Soleil returns to DC area with new show

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:21:53 GMT

Stunning acrobatics — with an uplifting message for the family: Cirque du Soleil premieres in Northern Virginia on Thursday night.The latest show creation from Cirque du Soleil, entitled “Echo,” is an idea that writer and stage director Mukhtar Omar Sharif Mukhtar said was years in the making.“There was a really beautiful message about connection, about reconnecting with what matters, what’s important. And that’s the nature around us, the animals we share this planet with,” he told WTOP.Mukhtar, once a performer himself, said it’s been a joy to watch this cast of performers bring his vision to life.Aside from the normal death-defying acrobatics and dazzling visuals, Mukhtar said the show unveils a brand-new two-story prop piece that’s sure to blow you away.“It’s one of those things that people have to wait and see,” he said. “But I will say that we use it as a metaphor, artistically, for our world. The more we take from it, the emptier it becomes. The m...

Teachers at Southwest Ranches school save safety officer using recently learned CPR training

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:21:53 GMT

Teachers at a school in Southwest Ranches became a safety officer’s guardian angels when he had a medical emergency at work, using the CPR training they recently learned when they rushed to his aid.7News cameras captured Scott Weissman as he greeted students at Greentree Preparatory Charter School on Thursday, weeks after his sudden health scare.“I’m here today because of these teachers, because of this school,” he said. “I love the job. I love the mission that I’m here for.”The 47-year-old safe school officer’s mission is to protect the lives of students and staff.But last month, it was Weissman who needed saving, when he collapsed in the parking lot.It was the second day of school after summer recess, and with the sun blazing during dismissal, Weissman said he started to feel thirsty.That was last thing he remembered until he woke up in the ambulance.“The first thing I remember is looking up and seeing the light in the rescue t...

State trooper hurt in crash while on vacation in Utah returns to Massachusetts

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:21:53 GMT

An overwhelming show of support met Massachusetts State Trooper Matthew McRae on Thursday as McRae returned home for the first time since he was involved in a serious crash while vacationing in Utah. According to officials, McRae was critically hurt while visiting family in Salt Lake City last month when a drunk driver crashed into a rideshare car he was in. Just under two weeks after the crash, dozens of state and local police showed up at Hanscom Airport as the MedFlight jet with McRae inside landed Thursday. “We’re just proud of this country and this state and the ability that the citizens have come together, along with our local first responders, MedFlight and everybody else that just helped assist us in getting our trooper home,” said Patrick McNamara, union president for the Massachusetts State Police Association. 7NEWS cameras were then rolling as McRae’s ambulance arrived at Lahey Hospital and Medical Center with a full escort from the state police. ...

Robert Kraft discusses Tom Brady, planned ceremony to honor Patriots icon

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:21:53 GMT

New England Patriots Owner Robert Kraft could barely contain his excitement Thursday when discussing Tom Brady’s planned return to Gillette Stadium this weekend. The Patriots icon will be honored during Sunday’s season opener against the Philadelphia Eagles. Recently speaking with reporters, Kraft shared the first details about what the ceremony might look like.“We’re going to do something special and unique with him,” Kraft said.Kraft said he talked to Brady recently. “[H]e’s really excited and I’m excited because our fans never really got a chance to say goodbye in a proper way,” Kraft said.The ceremony is set to be so special, Brady is making it a family affair. In all, Kraft said Brady will have 20 members of his family attending.“We’re honored to be hosting all of them,” Kraft said.When 7NEWS asked for some clues as to what will happen, Kraft almost let the secret out. In this case, though, he said it will be much cooler to wait. What Kraft did say was that all of hal...

Javier Assad tries to stay on roll for the Chicago Cubs — while Marcus Stroman takes the next step in his rehab

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:21:53 GMT

Good luck trying to find right-hander Javier Assad on old prospect lists.Assad hadn’t gained much attention outside the Chicago Cubs organization while in the minors because he doesn’t own the eye-catching stuff that becomes notable when a player works his way up the system.But the consistency the Cubs have seen from Assad since he slotted into the rotation Aug. 5 is why he has become so valuable as he uses the great defense behind him to produce quality outings. He entered Thursday’s game against the Arizona Diamondbacks with a 1.95 ERA and .212 average against in his five starts over the last month.Assad, 26, is a great organizational example of having an opportunity to help the team that signed him from Mexico as teenager get back to the postseason.“We focus so much on prospects that there’s a ton of guys down there trying to prove everyday who they are and that they’re worthy of being big leaguers and staying,” manager David Ross said Th...

Climate protester glues feet to floor, interrupting US Open semifinal between Gauff and Muchova

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:21:53 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — The U.S. Open semifinal between Coco Gauff and Karolina Muchova was delayed by 50 minutes because of a disruption by environmental activists in the Arthur Ashe Stadium stands on Thursday night. One protester glued his bare feet to the concrete floor.Gauff was ahead 6-4, 1-0 when play was halted early in the second set. Security guards and, later, more than a half-dozen police officers went over to confront the three protesters, who were wearing shirts that read, “End Fossil Fuels.” Two of the activists were escorted out within several minutes, but it took longer to remove the person who stuck his feet to the ground.Spectators were asked to move away to clear a path for the police, who were cheered by fans sitting near the section where the disruption happened. One of the protesters, who identified himself only as Ian, said they wanted the U.S. Open to be accountable because it has sponsors who are large corporations whose policies are contributing to global warming. ...

Bengals QB Joe Burrow becomes NFL’s highest-paid player with $275 million deal, AP source says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:21:53 GMT

CINCINNATI (AP) — Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow became the highest-paid player in the NFL on Thursday, agreeing to a five-year, $275 million contract extension, according to a person familiar with the deal.The contract includes more than $219 million guaranteed, said the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because it hadn’t been announced.The deal, which will pay Burrow an average of $55 million a year, puts him ahead of other top quarterbacks in the league who signed new contracts in the offseason.Beloved and teammates and fans in Cincinnati, Burrow has reversed the fortunes of the franchise while earning a reputation as a decisive and creative leader with a knack for figuring out how to pick up yards when plays break down.Signing the 2022 Pro Bowler and 2021 AP NFL Comeback Player of the Year to an extension was a goal of the team this summer, but the deal wasn’t finalized until three days before the Bengals’ season opener at Cleveland.“This i...

Thousands of residents return to Yellowknife as wildfire evacuation order lifted

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:21:53 GMT

YELLOWKNIFE — Thousands of Yellowknife residents have returned home this week as a wildfire evacuation order was lifted.The nearby fire forced the city’s 20,000 residents out of their homes about three weeks ago.The order for the capital of the Northwest Territories, which also included the First Nation communities of Dettah and N’Dilo, was downgraded Wednesday to an evacuation alert.Officials say about 1,000 people, including 630 essential workers, had been flown back to the territorial capital by the end of Wednesday and repatriation flights continued today.At least 1,700 vehicles have also returned to the city this week, although it’s unknown how many people were travelling in each vehicle.They say about 7,000 vehicles left the city after the evacuation order came into effect on Aug. 16.There are still thousands of people from Hay River and Fort Smith, who were ordered out days before Yellowknife, that are not able to go back due to wildfires.This report by The Canadi...

New Mexico governor seeks federal agents to combat gun violence in Albuquerque

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:21:53 GMT

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — The governor of New Mexico is asking the U.S. Justice Department to deploy more federal agents to the state in the aftermath of the shooting death of an 11-year-old boy outside a minor league baseball stadium.New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham on Thursday sent a letter U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland requesting aid in efforts to stem gun violence and human trafficking. The governor says she has repeatedly requested federal law enforcement deployments since June 2022.An 11-year-old was killed and a woman critically injured Wednesday as their vehicle was peppered with bullets in an apparent road-rage incident, as crowds departed an evening baseball game, Albuquerque Police Chief Harold Medina said. The governor said federal resources are needed to help curb “escalating violence and drug and human-trafficking activity that is ravaging our great state.” She also issued an emergency health order that taps into $750,000 to shore up public safety.“The nature...

Biden to use G20 summit and Vietnam visit to highlight US as trustworthy alternative to China

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:21:53 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden wants to show the world at the Group of 20 summit in India and during a stop in Vietnam that the United States and its like-minded allies are better economic and security partners than China. White House officials said Biden, who departed Thursday evening for New Delhi, will use the annual G20 gathering as an opportunity for the U.S. to highlight a proposition for developing and middle-income countries that would increase the lending power of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund by some $200 billion. That is an attempt to offer a significant, albeit smaller, alternative to China’s massive Belt and Road infrastructure initiative, which the U.S. views as a Trojan horse for China-led regional development and military expansion. Chinese President Xi Jinping plans to skip the summit, where Premier Li Qiang will represent the country.After the summit, Biden and Vietnamese General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong will meet in Hanoi and are ex...