Settlement reached in long-running cross-border sewage litigation

S1: After a long running lawsuit plans to ease cross-border sewage contamination.
S2: Basically says that they're going to do a better job. They're going to be more diligent when it comes to cross-border pollution.
S1: I'm Jade Hindman with Maureen CAVANAUGH. This is KPBS Midday Edition. A look at where we stand in the pandemic.
S2: Right now , we're as good as we have been in San Diego , in the regions since the beginning of the pandemic.
S1: And the San Diego County Fair may be in jeopardy this year. We'll have details and we'll tell you about the Henry Six project at the Old Globe. That's ahead on Midday Edition. First , the news. Closed beaches , contaminated water and the sickening stench of raw sewage have long been problems for coastal areas in the South Bay. But a settlement to three long running lawsuits announced Tuesday provides a path toward easing the problem of cross-border sewage contamination. Originally filed in 2018 , the lawsuits accused the federal agency in charge of cross-border pollution of violating the Clean Water Act by allowing sewage to flow across the border. But how big of an impact will the settlement really have and how soon will residents see improvements ? Here to tell us more is KPBS environment reporter Eric Anderson. Eric , welcome.
S2: Thank you.
S1:
S2: One was filed by the Surfrider Foundation that complained about clean water off the coast in the recreating waters in the ocean. The first one that was filed was from Imperial Beach and then joined by other municipalities like Chula Vista and the city of San Diego , the County of San Diego. And that basically faulted the federal agency in charge of this cross-border pollution situation for not doing what they were supposed to do. And then the third lawsuit came from the state of California and the Regional Water Quality Control Board , and it looked primarily at Clean Water Act violations that happened as a result of some of these cross-border sewage flows.
S1: Mm hmm.
S2: And the International Boundary and Water Commission will do its best to mitigate the flows , you know , to their ability until some of these other plan solutions come into effect. You may remember that the Environmental Protection Agency has a $300 million plan to address this cross-border sewage situation. It includes infrastructure on the U.S. side of the border , a big new treatment plant , sort of a diversion dike to catch flows in the Tijuana River that do make their way across the border. It calls for some infrastructure in Mexico , the construction of a treatment plant south of the city of Tijuana , along the coast , which doesn't currently exist. And , you know , once all those solutions and parts of the solution get built , officials estimate that 97% of the dry water flows will be captured and treated , meeting basic clean water standards.
S1:
S2: You know , this is something that the EPA started looking at two years ago. They're still in the review phase , the National Environmental Quality Act review , NEPA reviews. So it's something that's in process and they're trying to be diligent about it. But we're probably not going to see any shovel in the ground in a meaningful way until maybe the end of this calendar year or maybe early into the next calendar year. There is a small little thing , too , that has to be addressed by Congress. EPA has $300 million in funding and they suggest using that money to start the construction of an additional treatment plant that will greatly expand the amount of sewage that can be treated on this side of the border. But in order for them to do that , they have to technically transfer the money to the U.S.. I BWC , which is the agency that works with pollution and runs the international the existing international plant. So we have a transfer that money , and that requires an act of Congress. It's not anything that's being opposed , but it's a matter of actually getting that measure done and transferring the money over so that the projects can start as soon as the environmental reviews are over.
S1:
S2: This was a settlement that we first reported at the beginning of March. But I think that they're just kind of reminding the community that , look , we've been working hard on this issue for a number of years , and we're finally getting to the point where we feel like enough progress is being made , that we can kind of stand down from this this legal challenge against the federal government. And so it's very well received by all the municipalities and all the groups that that brought the legal action against the federal government. And I think that they're all anxiously looking forward to seeing some of these EPA design solutions go into effect.
S1:
S2: This is a big possible solution. And I think that the people who are most directly affected by the pollution are the ones who are most enthusiastic about the potential solution. They are hopeful that this will do it. This will get rid of this on. Going pollution problem that that region has had to endure for decades. And I think that they're all anxiously looking toward the future.
S1: You talked about some long term projects to tackle this issue.
S2: But as we've seen over the past few years , that infrastructure is woefully inadequate and , you know , doing a little bit of additional testing and and maybe some canyon cleanup work will have an impact. But I think that the real impact will happen once these big infrastructure projects get built and they have a chance to really deal with some of these cross-border flows.
S1:
S2: I think you notice it most in Imperial Beach. I've talked a number of times with Imperial Beach Mayor Serge Madina about this , and that community really gets inundated with the sewage that flows through the two U on a river valley and out to the ocean. They also get some sewage flow when there are northerly swells. They also get sewage flows from south of Tijuana. That is , you know , raw sewage is dumped in the ocean and it flows north. And , you know , they had a couple of hundred days of beach closures this past year. And that and Imperial Beach has wonderful , picturesque beach territory that they just can't use because the water is polluted and it's considered a health risk for anyone that would go into it to recreate. So I think that they not only have to deal with the dirty water and the smells , it's a very real and very consistent presence there that everybody is aware of. And it affects day to day life in that community.
S1: I've been speaking with KPBS environment reporter Eric Anderson. Eric , thank you.
S2: My pleasure.
S1: The Biden administration will extend its masking mandate on airlines and public transportation through May 3rd. The decision will allow the CDC to monitor an increase in the virus across the country. Meanwhile , recent data from San Diego County indicates continued low rates of infection , hospitalizations and deaths. Joining me now with more is Dr. Eric Topol , director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute in La Hoya. Dr. Topol , welcome back to the program.
S2: Thanks very much.
S1:
S2: The problem we have had with al-Muqrin and then this second but two variant is it's so hyper infectious that unless you've got it in 95 or 94 , the cloth masks just don't really cut it. So all masks help to some degree , but you've got to get the really high quality ones to make a difference with these very difficult variants.
S1: Philadelphia just reinstated its indoor masking rule. Governor Newsom has talked about the possibility of bringing back masking as needed.
S2: Lowest number of hospitalizations. It's hard to get a real handle on the cases because people are doing a lot of home testing and we're not testing at all. But the wastewater surveillance is another good way to look. And the test positivity rate and those that we do get test and the PCR tests and all the metrics look very favorable. Yes , we're in the midst of our national a two wave , which is being seen mostly in the Northeast right now. We will see some more. L.A. is certainly showing some more signs of it , but it doesn't look like it's going to be anything like we went through December or January , which was a monster wave and the worst wave of the whole pandemic.
S1: San Diego's current infection rate is relatively low , as you mentioned , and the county says the spread of COVID is likely decreasing.
S2: The trend as we became fully dominant with this new variant because it's 30% more infectious than the original American. We're going to see some uptick. We've already seen a bit of that in L.A. It's unlikely not to occur here as well , but it doesn't appear as anything worrisome. I mean , this is more like a bump than a wave. So it doesn't mean we should just think the pandemic is over. It isn't over. We should keep our guard up. And so in the weeks ahead , we'll see the full scale of it. But it doesn't look at all concerning right now. We still , in the months ahead , face the prospects of our even more worrisome variant. So that's something to keep in mind.
S1:
S2: And the difference is the Northeast got started with Bay two a few weeks ahead of us. So we're trailing that it will show up. That's inevitable. But the fortunate thing is , even in the north east , the worst hit region , it hasn't gotten to very high levels. It's a much slower ascent or rate of rise in the cases. So this isn't anything worrisome overall. But remember , you don't want to get an infection. You don't want to get long COVID. We just learned that American can cause long COVID , which we didn't know until really in recent days. So keep your guard up because we are going to have more circulating virus. We're just lucky right now that at the moment it's quite low.
S1: And looking at early indicators like wastewater , the latest data show the viral load in wastewater here is around ten reported cases per 100,000 people.
S2: The test positivity rate , which had gone down , you know , to as low as 1% in parts of California. It's starting to go up Countrywide. It's still only 3.6% , which is nothing like near 30% in the midst of the January crime wave. So test positivity for those who are getting tests as well as wastewater or a couple of the good metrics to keep an eye on. And they will be increasing to some degree. Hopefully not at all worrisome in the weeks ahead.
S1:
S2: But clearly , if you're over 60 and you're at least four months from having had a booster. To your benefit , both from survival and being enhanced as well as avoidance of hospitalization if you haven't had any booster. It's essential because the protection that you get from the booster against Ourcrowd , especially if you're over age 50 , but any adult is substantial and we're talking about serious illness , hospitalizations , deaths , long COVID , everything. So the booster rate in San Diego , in California is much too low , much lower than the countries that have really done well against crime in terms of keeping their hospitalization rates and deaths very low. So we've got to get the booster rate boosted. It's really essential.
S1: And the state of California is putting new efforts behind trying to get younger kids vaccinated. They're pairing activities with vaccination opportunities to increase youth vaccination. What does it mean for the potential of the virus to continue spreading if vaccination rates don't increase in younger kids ? Right.
S2: Well , we've had a lot of school outbreaks and we're probably going to have a few more with the bay setting into the region. It really is smart to get kids 5 to 11 young children vaccinated because not only will they keep the schools operational and avoid these outbreaks , but also all the people they connect with in the families household , but also , you know , grandparents and and their whole network. So there's a real definite benefit for young children that get vaccinated. We obviously don't have anything for younger than age five , but we're not using this great tool that's so safe in children between five and all the way up through 17.
S1: You've talked about the need for an increase in availability for antiretroviral pills and other methods of treatment.
S2: And that Paxil , which has 90% efficacy against hospitalizations and deaths for people who develop COVID , we're in short supply. And our fund to have that supply amplified is threatened because there's not there's an impasse in Congress not taking the pandemic seriously , being too complacent. So we have a limited supply. There is a website by Health and Human Services that tells us every pharmacy that has Paxil in San Diego , how many blister packs they have at that time. However , the supply is quite limited and we may , even during a battle bump , we could see that strained. And then , of course , in the months ahead with the looming prospects of another variant. So we've got to get the supply of not just that pill that works so well , but hopefully other pills in the pipeline to get them in in broad availability so that it will be easy when someone gets a diagnosis to have this as a backdrop.
S1: And you mentioned earlier this distinction between a COVID bump and a full blown surge.
S2: And the place in the country , northeast , it's far along weeks ahead of everywhere else is not seeing anything like what we experienced. So whatever you want to call it , it's not a surge. It's not a spike. There's more circulating virus that's that's going to be hitting us here in San Diego. But overall , it's it's a favorable positive thing after what we've been through.
S1: I've been speaking with Dr. Eric Topol , director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute in La Hoya. Dr. Topol , thank you so much for joining us.
S2: Thanks for having me.
S3: This is KPBS Midday Edition. I'm Maureen CAVANAUGH with Jane Heineman. A San Diego judge says he believes the county fair can go on this year , but fair officials say that may be impossible. It's the latest chapter in an ongoing legal battle over how the selection of the fair's game and ride contractor was made. Allegations of favoritism and even fraud have surfaced as Fair officials attempted to put together the first full scale San Diego County Fair in three years. The judge has refused to lift his temporary injunction against the use of the contractor selected for this year's Fair. Now , fair officials say there's not enough time left to select a new company , and the fair set to open on June 8th may not go on. Joining me is KPBS. North County multimedia producer Alex Winn and Alex. Welcome to the program.
S4: Well , thank you for having me.
S3: The selection of a contractor called Ray Cammack shows is at the heart of this dispute.
S4: That's the area where carnival games , rides and some food vendors are held. It doesn't affect any of the parts of the fair , such as the animal shows , display booths and craft booths , as well as the concerts. Okay.
S3: Okay.
S4: But ARX won the contract entirely sued , claiming that their scores were changed in favor of R.C.S. So during the discovery part of the process in deposition , Del Mar Fairgrounds Chief Administrator Melinda Carmichael admitted in deposition that she changed the score and shredded the original score sheet. And also a retired fairgrounds administrator also said essentially the same thing in deposition , that CEO Carlene Moore had also changed the score. Now , this was the contract for the 2021 fair , which , as you know , was canceled because of the pandemic. The fairgrounds hosted a scaled down event called Homegrown Fun that year. And because of the cancellation , the Fair Board withdrew the contract and last fall issued another request for bids and asks was the only bidder and tally did not bid , saying that the bid was written to tail it to arcs so that it was the only company that qualified.
S3: Now , no final determination has been made on any of these claims , but Judge Kenneth Metal refused to lift his injunction.
S4: And the process has to be transparent to ensure fairness , which is why Talley is suing. They're saying the Fair Board showed favoritism toward Garcia's. So long story short , the Fair Board can't just award another company the contract. And as the attorney for the board told the judge yesterday , the process takes roughly three months and by that time , the fair would be over.
S3:
S4: John Moot , their attorney , said all they need is the word from the board and they'll have the rights trucked in from Texas , where they're based. What Talley is claiming is that the board is using delaying tactics to put pressure on the judge so that they can carry out the contract with R.C.S. Essentially , they're saying that all of this is delaying so that , you know , by the time the fair is happening , Arceus is the only one that could do it because they're only 80 miles away based in Arizona. Now , whether they are legally able to do so is a complicated answer. Tally maintains that since they are the rightful winner of the 21 contract and that's a five year contract , they should be able to be awarded this carnival for this year.
S3: The San Diego County Fair has really had a rough time of it in the last two years.
S4: And also again in 2021 , though , there was a scaled back event. The fair board says they had to lay off about 85% of their staff because there was no money coming in and the fair accounts for roughly 60% of their operating budget.
S3:
S4: You know , their boots selling stuff , their craft booths , animal shows and concerts. So the fair can go on without the carnival. And at yesterday's board meeting , the fair's CEO basically said they're working to ensure that there is a full. Carnival at the fair for this year.
S3: How are fair officials handling ticket sales ? I think they have advance ticket sales. Some people have already bought tickets for the fair.
S4: Well , yes. And when the injunction was put in place. They had to halt that advance ticket sales because it was using RC as a ticketing system. So yesterday in court , both sides agreed that the fair can go on , start selling tickets again for the Fair Events tickets , and that they will work out a process. And wherever this may leads , whether Talley or R.C.S. Or company some of the to we'll do the carnival. They'll figure out the logistics later for that.
S3:
S4: So that's a hefty chunk of change.
S3: Our county fair officials getting any prodding to work this out ? Yes.
S4: So yesterday the judge essentially told both sides to work together to ensure that the fair is happening. What he said is that nobody wants to see the fair canceled and that's the last thing that he wants to do. But he did not state his injunction because he says also , in the interest of fairness , to tally who stands to lose the most if the contract was allowed to go forward. He didn't stay his ruling , but he told both sides , you need to work together. And it's not an order. It's a very strong prodding by the judge.
S3:
S4: And that's the question that everyone's waiting for. So the fair board has the fairs only about two months away , so they have some limited time to make a decision. So that's the next shoe to drop. Whether there are going to be a full carnival or not. And if they're not , what the midway is going to look like.
S3: I've been speaking with KPBS North County multimedia producer Alex Nguyen. And thank you , Alex.
S4: Well , thank you , Maureen. It was a pleasure to be here.
S1: In our ongoing series. Let's talk about it. We answer your questions about race and equity. In part two of the series KPBS Race and Equity reporter Christina Kamm takes a look at the art of difficult conversations.
S5: When you first meet such a kwahu nana , you might notice her big smile or her unique one of a kind clothing that she designs herself.
S1: I like to integrate colleges. My outfit here is this is the African country girl.
S5: An immigrant from Cameroon. She calls herself a bridge maker between cultures and ideas.
S1: I am a diversity , equity and inclusion practitioner and a facilitator for the National Conflict Resolution Center.
S5: For her , this work isn't a 9 to 5 job. It's how she lives her life. Almost two years ago , at the height of the 2020 racial justice protests , Cuomo Nana was living in Santee and.
S1: The corner of Mission Gorge and Clear Mexico Street , which is where the protests , the bulk of the protests were happening. And then on the other side of the streets were counterprotesters.
S5: The air was thick with tension.
S1: I could not imagine. How can anybody be counterprotest in this ? You know , it doesn't make sense to me.
S5: So she walked over to them to try to understand. It didn't go particularly well. One man approached her and told her.
S1: Oh , I can't breathe , which I found very offensive because we're on the other side holding signs that said , I can't breathe. And I felt like he was saying it in a bit of a mocking way.
S5: She walked away , gathered herself , but then kept coming back , listening , and also explaining her experiences as a black woman. All this to say ? Cuomo Nana knows how to have a tough conversation , which is what makes her the perfect person to answer this week's audience question. It comes from 36 year old La mesa storekeeper and artist Alon Nakash. He's a first generation Iraqi-American who says he's noticed it's hard to talk to people with different political views because people tend to shut down. He asks.
S2:
S5:
S1: First , go into this conversation not with an intention to destroy , but an intention to engage. If you are going with the aim of I want to destroy you , shut down very fast.
S5: Secondly , get.
S1: Comfortable being uncomfortable , expect discomfort and see it as okay , in fact necessary. We cannot grow without discomfort. And finally we come to conflict when our narrow experiences lead us to different conclusions about how the world really is. Get into a conversation not to prove that you are right , but to sharpen your understanding of the issues.
S5: But she says it's important to remember that engaging in conversations isn't always possible when the other person is unwilling to hear you. Mutual respect and dignity are key , she says , because tough conversations are not about giving equal credence to people who spew hate or racism.
S1: Self-care is choosing not to engage with people who are committed to misunderstanding you. That's kind of my motto.
S5: And yet , in spite of the setbacks , she still believes in the power of taking time to talk to people about what they believe in. For her , it's not about fixing all the world's divisions through some magical Kumbaya moment.
S1: Not every conversation will lead to an action tomorrow. But I see them as sowing seeds.
S5: It's about taking the first step towards a more just and understanding world. Christina Kim , KPBS News.
S1: Send us your questions. You can reach us at 16196308516. Leave us a message with your question.
S3: Why would anyone who's getting free trash pickup in the city of San Diego vote to change that ? A new poll shows support growing for an initiative that would repeal the 100 year old people's ordinance , which established free trash service for people in single family homes. And one reason seems to be a perk that could be included in the measure free replacement of trash bins. A new poll shows adding free trash bins to the proposal boosts support by nine points. And a KPBS report about thousands of smashed and battered bins tells us why. Joining me is KPBS investigative reporter Claire TRAGESER. Claire , welcome.
S5: Thank you.
S3:
S5: So it was done by the political consulting company Public Dynamics , and it was paid for by the San Diego Municipal Employees Association , which is the city's white collar union. And it found that people are actually seem to be in favor of changing the people's ordinance so that single family home owners would pay for trash pickup. Now , that's you know , before there's really been any campaigning on either side , including negative campaigning. But it did find a a 14 point split where where more people were in favor. And the other interesting thing was that if they added the language , that you would get free containers for curbside pickup. That added nine points to overall support for the measure.
S3:
S5: So , you know , I think that the calculation is there that this could make up a significant portion of the city's general fund revenue.
S3: Now , suggesting free trash bin replacement , as you mentioned , really sweetens this proposal for a lot of people. You did a report recently on San Diego's problem with broken trash bins.
S5: It was 17,500 bins just in one year. And that that number had increased over the past decade by 42% , which is which is quite a bit. And , you know , you can look at the story on KPBS. We looked at some of the places where people ordered bins the most , which was San Carlos neighborhood and some of the other north of eight neighborhoods. So we did a whole a whole analysis on trash bins.
S3: And how do the bins get broken ? Right.
S5: Well , this was one of the interesting things was it seemed like there are two reasons. One is that the city uses pretty cheap trash bins. If you look at other cities like Chula Vista , they have much sturdier plastic bins , whereas the cities are are pretty flimsy. And the other reason is that the trash trucks. Back at the time , I was told that it's supposed to take 10 seconds for the trash truck to lift up the bin , dump it in the trash truck and bring it back down. But I went out and filmed it and it was happening much faster , more like six or 7 seconds. And so the bins were really getting thrown around and you can really see the lid comes down really hard on the trash can when it's being slammed back down. And that's one of the biggest things that breaks most frequently is is those lids they just crack.
S3: And how much does it cost to replace a trash bin ? Right.
S5: So homeowners pay for it if it's one of the black trash bins and it costs $70 and then $25 if you want it delivered. But the blue recycle bins are free , although you do have to pay if you want it delivered. And I've heard from people since the story was published saying , you know , I got a new trash bin. And then a year later it broke again and I had to get another one. So they were kind of paying regularly for for replacement bins.
S3:
S5: The city says that if if they are at fault , if a trash truck driver or trash truck or something like that is at fault , they will pay to replace bins. But in that report I did back in 2019 , I found a number of people who said , you know , that they they it was quite clear to them that the trash truck had caused the damage and the city pushed back and fought them on it. And then I remember there was one person who had. Like a doorbell ring video of the trash truck literally skewering his trash can , flinging it around back and forth. And then , you know , finally dumping it out on the sidewalk. And it was only once he showed the city that video and said , look at this. Then the city paid for it. But it took a lot of fighting back and forth.
S3: Is San Diego the only city in San Diego County that does not charge for trash pickup ? Yes.
S5: San Diego is the only city in the county that doesn't charge , and I believe it's the only big city in the entire state that that doesn't charge.
S3: Now , the city council hasn't decided yet on whether it's going to put the trash pickup fee on the November ballot.
S5: I think the language has to be reviewed by people at the city and then the city council will vote on it. So , no , not yet , but but I guess we will see. You know , if this poll is to be believed , maybe it would be a good idea. But I think that's ultimately up to the city council.
S3: I've been speaking with KPBS investigative reporter Claire TRAGESER. Claire , thank you very much.
S5: Thank you.
S3: This is KPBS Midday Edition. I'm Maureen CAVANAUGH with Jade Heineman. The Old Globe has an ambitious project. It will present a new two play adaptation of Henry The Sixth Parts one , two and three. Next summer. And it's launching a yearlong program of citywide arts , engagement and humanities events. KPBS arts reporter Beth ACCOMANDO speaks with the Globe's artistic director , Barry Edelstein , about the Henry Six project that will kick off this Saturday.
S6: Barry The Globe has an ambitious project it's working on. There is going to be a yearlong Henry the Sixth Project. So tell me what this entails.
S2: Yes , next summer , in the summer of 2023 , in our outdoor Summer Shakespeare Festival , we're going to do a project we're calling Henry the Sixth , which is a production of three Shakespeare plays. Henry The six parts one , two and three condensed into two. So with these productions next year , we will join a very short list of American theater companies that have produced every single Shakespeare play.
S6: Well , that's impressive. The Henry the six plays are not often performed.
S2: They tell the story of the reign of King Henry the sixth , which was notable basically for this thing called The Wars of the Roses. This 50 year period of intense civil war in kind of 15th century England , where two great families , the York family and the Lancaster family , the house of York in the house of Lancaster , had this ongoing civil war as various members of these families jockeyed for power and tried to become king of England. And Shakespeare chronicles this extremely eventful period in these plays. So they're full of battle scenes and family struggles and incredible scenes of political debate. And then there's a weird , supernatural thing that goes through them about the nature of England and what England means in the lives of all these figures that are jockeying for power. They're really wonderful plays. They're very early Shakespeare plays. HENRY The sixth part one , some say , is Shakespeare's very first play. And the other reason you don't see them is that it's three whole plays of Shakespeare. You know , every Shakespeare plays five act , and you can't just do one of them. The story only makes sense if you get the sweep of all three plays. So I have taken these three big Shakespeare plays and I condense them into two.
S6:
S2: One , because they are the plays of a young writer. They have a certain kind of show offy quality to them. Shakespeare , when he wrote the plays , was really young. He was in his twenties and he was trying to make his reputation as a writer in London. So he said , Watch me do this now. I'm going to do a battle scene. Now I'm going to have somebody walk in with a decapitated head. Now I'm going to do some big bomber soliloquy. And you watch him kind of fledge his wings and see little traces of what we know he's going to grow into over the subsequent couple of decades of his writing career. And throughout the three plays , you hear the voice of Shakespeare , that amazing kind of unmistakable , tremendously powerful voice suddenly peek out. So it's fun just to hang out with these plays because we know who this writer is going to become. But the second thing is that the plays take a very interesting point of view about history. They sort of see history as a turning wheel , fortunes , wheel spins around , and that sometimes in your life you're ascending on this wheel and then you hit the top of the wheel and then you sort of spin around again toward the bottom. And so the way the plays are built , these figures keep showing up out of nowhere. And then they rise up and they become the person in power. And then they crest over the top and they fall because somebody else takes over , and then another person comes up and then they go over the top and they come down again. And this thing just keeps turning. And the big political insight that Shakespeare has in the plays is that these figures begin to start to chase power for power's own sake. The any idea that there are values that are larger than themselves or larger than power itself goes away ? There's no idea about England and what England means. There's only an idea about what kind of power I can grasp and how long I can hold on to it. And it's kind of a cautionary tale about what happens when political power becomes divorced from values. And the answer to what happens is only violence results. And so again and again in the play , these leaders come into power and all they want is their own self-interest to be served. And violence follows. War , death , chaos on the streets. And it's just a remarkably sobering and insightful and incisive reading of how political power can go.
S6: Awry and making you feel like some things don't change that much.
S2: Well , you know , there's some stuff in it that's kind of shockingly current. You know , international conquest , just for the sake of the reputation of a leader. Or there's at one point there's a populist rebellion where the people themselves kind of rise up. There are authoritarian leaders that show up. So , yeah , the brilliant thing about Shakespeare always is that he seems to have lived the things that we're living through 400 years before we did. And that's absolutely the case here. The plays feel kind of shockingly contemporary in the way they're put together. Yeah , Beth , you're absolutely right. You sit there and watch them and you think , oh , my God , this guy seemed to know everything that we were going to live through centuries before we got to it.
S6: And there's going to be an event on the 16th , a celebration of Shakespeare's birthday.
S2: There will be some limited number of opportunities for non-professional members of the San Diego community to be on the stage. But there will be many , many more opportunities to connect with the show through learning about Shakespeare. So every designer that we hire to do the show , the set designer , the costume designer , the lighting designer. We're also asking them to come out to San Diego over the course of the next year and lead workshops with our community partners. And we're also going to commence a series of workshops just to get our community more familiar with the characters and the plays , the language in the plays , the ideas in the plays , which we're calling our Age six Epic Workshop series so that we can surface in our community based partner organizations who is interested in getting involved and how they want to get involved. So we want to know what are ways that people think it would be fun over the course of the next year to engage with the Old Globe and learn about and participate in some way in the making of a professional production. So all of that is going to be introduced Saturday the 16th at 11 a.m. at the Old Globe in Balboa Park as we launch this series of workshops to invite people to get familiar with Henry the Sixth and the project that we're making.
S6: Well , I want to thank you very much for talking about this Henry six project.
S2: Thank you. But I am looking forward to talking with you about it again , and I really appreciate your interest in it. Thank you.
S3: That was Beth ACCOMANDO speaking with Barry Edelstein. The Henry Six Project kicks off at the Old Globe Theaters. Happy birthday , Mr. Shakespeare. Free event on Saturday , April 16th , from 11 to 1:30 p.m. on the Globe's outdoor Copley Plaza.