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Playhouse set to hold auditions for ‘Great American Trailer Park Musical’

From Staff reports McCONNELLSTOWN — The Playhouse at McConnellstown will hold auditions for its upcoming production of The Great American Trailer Park Musical at 7 p.m. Wednesday, July 2, at the theater, 11680 Raystown Road. Directed by Oscar Pollock and Abby Lambert, the country-rock and blues musical is scheduled to be performed Aug. 21, 22, 28, and 29 at 7:30 p.m., with matinee performances Aug. 23 and 30 at 2 p.m. Auditioners should prepare 16 bars from a musical selection and bring piano sheet music. Recorded accompaniment will not be accepted. Cold script readings will also be ...

Judiciary Committee advances legislation

HARRISBURG — Sen. Lisa Baker (R-20) and Sen. Wayne Langerholc (R-35) announced Senate Judiciary Committee passage of legislation they introduced to update Pennsylvania’s sentencing laws for second-degree murder in response to a recent court decision declaring the mandatory life-without-parole sentence for that crime unconstitutional. “Senate Bill 1400 ensures Pennsylvania has a clear and workable sentencing structure for second-degree murder that complies with the court’s decision while continuing to recognize the severity of these offenses,” the lawmakers said. “The bill ...

Lawmakers may need to tap Pennsylvania rainy day reserves

HARRISBURG — A rainy day is looming over the state Capitol. As Pennsylvania lawmakers approach the June 30 deadline to pass a budget, they’re facing mounting costs for obligations like healthcare and education. There’s also a multibillion-dollar gap between how much the state expects to spend and what it expects to bring in, even with new revenue options, like taxing soon-to-be-illegal skill games, on the table. That means lawmakers are likely to target the state’s last-ditch reserve fund, commonly called the rainy day fund, to balance the 2026-27 budget. The fund is ...

A member of the cultlike Zizians group is charged

A member of the cultlike group known as Zizians has been charged with murder in the shooting of her parents at their Pennsylvania home on her 30th birthday, and a prosecutor said Wednesday she wasn’t acting alone. Delaware County District Attorney Tanner Rouse said evidence from a neighbor’s doorbell camera, ballistics and analysis of cellphone records have left investigators certain Michelle Zajko is at least partly responsible for the deaths of her parents, Rita and Richard. They were shot in her childhood playroom on New Year’s Eve 2022, surrounded by her old dolls and ...

Trump to headline McCormick’s Defense and Innovation Summit

President Donald Trump will be returning to Pennsylvania in July to headline a summit aimed at boosting the nation’s defense and innovation industries. On Wednesday morning, U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick, R-Pa., announced that Trump will headline the 2026 Pennsylvania Defense and Innovation Summit at the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle. The two-day summit, which McCormick said will convene the nation’s leaders in defense, technology, finance, and government, will take place on July 14 and 15. The event is slated to take place exactly one year after McCormick hosted the ...

Shapiro, Garrity willing to debate

HARRISBURG — For the first time since 2018, Pennsylvanians may have the chance to watch their choices for governor meet face-to-face for a debate. Spokespeople for incumbent Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro and Republican challenger Stacy Garrity told Spotlight PA that the candidates are both willing to participate in at least one debate leading up to November’s general election. Neither would discuss the potential details, like what organization might host one or who they’d accept as moderator. “We aren’t going to negotiate the terms of a debate through the press,” said ...