Things To Do In SW Florida

Performers are set for the 2026 Disney on Broadway concert series, a musical aspect of the annual Epcot International Festival of the Arts, and there are six newbies in the mix, including Susan Egan, the original Belle on Broadway’s “Beauty and the Beast,” plus there’s a double dip of actors who have personified Genie on stage in “Aladdin.”

The 12 singers appear in pairs in a daily schedule that begins Jan. 16. Then four of them reunite for special appearances on the final two days of the festival.

The lineup, subject to change, is:

• Jan. 16, 18, 19, 22, 24, 26 and 27: Isabelle McCalla and Adam Jacobs (both from “Aladdin”)

• Jan. 17, 20, 21, 23, 25, 28 and 29: Sierra Boggess (“The Little Mermaid”) and Michael James Scott (“Aladdin” Genie No. 1 of the series)

• Jan. 30, Feb. 1, 2, 5, 7, 9 and 10: Anastacia McCleskey and Josh Strickland (both from “Tarzan”)

• Jan. 31, Feb. 3, 4, 6, 8, 11 and 12: Mandy Gonzalez (“Aida”) and Kissy Simmons (“The Lion King”) read more

By RIO YAMAT, Associated Press

Travelers can expect to see fewer flights to many major U.S. cities starting Friday morning, when the Federal Aviation Administration said it would reduce traffic across 40 airports to ease the load on the nation’s air traffic controllers.

The head of the FAA said the move was unprecedented but necessary to keep air travel safe as traffic controllers, who are federal employees, show increasing signs of stress and fatigue while working unpaid during the longest government shutdown on record.

Most of them worked six days a week and put in mandatory overtime even before the shutdown, but they have been doing so without paychecks as lawmakers fail to agree on a way to reopen the government.

Airports in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, along with hubs across the U.S., are among the 40 that will see flights cut, according to a list distributed to the airlines and obtained by The Associated Press.

Here is what to know about the cutbacks and what to do if your trip is delayed or canceled: read more

By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO, AP Retail Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — American shoppers are expected to spend more during this holiday shopping season than last year despite economic uncertainty and rising prices.

The 2025 forecast from the National Retail Federation on Thursday estimates that shoppers will collectively spend between $1.01 trillion and $1.02 trillion in November and December, an increase of 3.7% to 4.2% compared with last year.

Retailers rung up $976 billion in holiday sales last year, the group said.

“We’re seeing really positive behavior and engagement from consumers, ” NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay told reporters on a call Thursday. “In fairness, that’s been somewhat of a surprise.”

But Shay said more Americans are growing selective and they’re focused on discounts. And while spending is expected to be up again, the growth of that spending may be in decline.

That is still greater than the average increase of 3.6% between 2010 to 2019. Americans ramped up spending after that during the coronavirus pandemic. Holiday season sales rose 8.9% in 2020 and soared 12.5% in 2021, according to the NRF. read more

By JAMES BROOKS

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — In 2021, Danish video game live-streamer Marie Watson received an image of herself from an unknown Instagram account.

She instantly recognized the holiday snap from her Instagram account, but something was different: Her clothing had been digitally removed to make her appear naked. It was a deepfake.

“It overwhelmed me so much,” Watson recalled. “I just started bursting out in tears, because suddenly, I was there naked.”

In the four years since her experience, deepfakes — highly realistic artificial intelligence-generated images, videos or audio of real people or events — have become not only easier to make worldwide but also look or sound exponentially more realistic. That’s thanks to technological advances and the proliferation of generative AI tools, including video generation tools from OpenAI and Google.

These tools give millions of users the ability to easily spit out content, including for nefarious purposes that range from depicting celebrities Taylor Swift and Katy Perry to disrupting elections and humiliating teens and women. read more

NEW YORK (AP) — Hundreds of flights set for Friday are already being cut at major U.S. airports as part of the Federal Aviation Administration’s effort to phase in 10% reductions because of the government shutdown.

The Federal Aviation Administration is imposing the reductions to take pressure off air traffic controllers, who are federal employees and have gone without pay during the shutdown.

In addition to reduced flight traffic, the shutdown has led to more flight delays, with experts advising travelers to check flight statuses before heading to the airport, among other tips.

Here’s a closer look at what to know about the reductions.

Which airports are affected?

The list of airports facing reductions includes 40 airports with Atlanta, Denver, Dallas, Miami, Newark and San Francisco among them. A full list of airports facing reductions is here.

Nearly 500 flights have already been canceled for Friday, according to www.FlightAware.com. That’s more than four times higher than the number of flights cancelled Thursday. read more