First Coast Connect: 01/21/26

First Coast Connect: 01/21/26

https://news.wjct.org/show/first-coas...

From negotiating the future of rocket reentry to safely defusing explosive political debates, the work at Cecil Spaceport is an ever-expanding universe. We talk to the man helming the spaceport about ongoing development, management challenges (both logistical and interpersonal), and when the East Coast’s first-licensed commercial horizontal launch spaceport might actually blast off.

Guest: Matt Bocchino, director, Cecil Airport and Spaceport

Telling the story of the Timucuan
Then, a deep dive into the science and history of Jacksonville’s oldest national park. The 11th Timucuan Science and History Symposium on Friday will feature authors, researchers and professors discussing the history, archaeology, ecosystems and unusual inhabitants of the Timucuan Ecological and Historical Preserve. Attendees will hear updates on continuing projects, including the status of wetland elevation and shoreline movement and a study on American Beach becoming a National Historic Landmark.

Guest: Fred Richards, executive director of Timucuan Parks Foundation

'Dear Evan Hansen' by the Sea
And, one of the earliest musicals to incorporate the omnipresence and pressure of social media, the Tony and Grammy award-winning musical Dear Evan Hansen dominated Broadway throughout its nearly six-year run. Now, it comes to Players by the Sea, one of the first community theaters in the country to stage it. We talk to the director and star about the show’s messages of connectivity, consequences and the complexities of individual mental health.

Guests:

Bradley Akers, managing director of Players by the Sea
Chad Boyd, actor playing Evan Hansen in Dear Evan Hansen