Clevelanders will rally Saturday alongside millions of Americans in a new wave of "No Kings" protests.

Why it matters: Thousands are expected to take to the streets to denounce the Trump administration's policies, from ICE's growing presence to concerns about the Iran war and its effect on gas prices.

The big picture: Organizers expect the nationwide demonstrations to surpass last year's No Kings rallies in June and October.

• More than 3,000 events are planned nationwide.

Zoom in: The most prominent local rally will take place at 1pm at the Free Stamp in Willard Park on East Ninth Street and Lakeside Avenue.

• More than 20 other protests will take place throughout Northeast Ohio at various locations, from Avon Lake to Ashtabula, extending to Cuyahoga Falls and Canton.

Flashback: Last October's protest at Willard Park drew approximately 15,000 people, according to organizers, including appearances by Mayor Justin Bibb and U.S. Rep. Shontel Brown (D-Cleveland).

• Members of grassroots organization Mobilize the Vote NEO have continued to hold similar protests each Wednesday, weather permitting, at East Ninth Street and Lakeside Avenue.

Zoom out: The Twin Cities, which have been at the center of the Trump administration's aggressive deportation campaign, will host the flagship No Kings rally.

• Sen. Bernie Sanders, Joan Baez, Maggie Rogers, Jane Fonda and Bruce Springsteen are scheduled to perform or speak at the State Capitol in St. Paul.

What they're saying: Cleveland organizer Ellen Brown said in a statement these events "celebrate our democracy and our constitution."

• "[These rallies] demonstrate that We the People support an immediate end to foreign wars, ICE's terror tactics, the administration's unconstitutional power grab, covering up evidence of crimes against children and government for billionaires."

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Playhouse Square has unveiled its 2026-27 KeyBank Broadway Series, a lineup mixing new, Tony Award-winning hits with familiar crowd-pleasers.

Why it matters: Cleveland continues to be one of the nation's premier Broadway touring hubs thanks to an enthusiastic subscriber base — currently at 40,000 members, per Playhouse Square — and the ability to host extended runs that many cities can't support.

Driving the news: The seven-show season starts with a bang, hosting the national tour launch of "Death Becomes Her" after multiple weeks of rehearsals in town.

• It's an adaptation of the 1992 Robert Zemeckis film starring Meryl Streep and Goldie Hawn.

The intrigue: The season concludes with "Harry Potter and the Cursed Child," the only non-musical in the series and the highest-grossing non-musical in Broadway history.

• Harry Potter popularity may be on the rise after the new HBO series debuts this Christmas.

Zoom in: Here's the full lineup:

• "Death Becomes Her" (Sept. 12-Oct. 3, 2026)
• "Mamma Mia!" (Jan. 5-24, 2027)
• "Boop! The Musical" (Feb. 2-21, 2027)
• "Maybe Happy Ending" (March 2-21, 2027)
• "The Phantom of the Opera" (April 14-May 9, 2027)
• "Buena Vista Social Club" (July 27-Aug. 15, 2027)
• "Harry Potter and the Cursed Child" (Aug. 24-Sept. 12, 2027)

💭 Sam's thought bubble: I'm looking forward to "Maybe Happy Ending," the 2025 Tony Award winner for best musical.

• The story about androids in South Korea who discover the meaning of love in a senior housing complex sounds like a Pixar tearjerker.

What's next: Season ticket packages are on sale now, with individual tickets to be released later.

🚌 RTA plans to reduce service by three percent in August amid a budget crunch.

• The B Line downtown trolley will be discontinued, and the Rapid Waterfront Line will run for special events only. (NEOtrans)

🌟 Actress Meg Stalter, known for roles in the Netflix comedy series "Too Much" and HBO's "Hacks," is a Cleveland native whose father owns Voodoo Monkey Tattoo. (Cleveland Magazine)

😎 JetBlue Airways will relaunch its nonstop service between Cleveland and Fort Lauderdale, Florida on July 8. (Cleveland.com)

🚨 Former East Cleveland police chief Kenneth Lundy has been indicted on 31 counts for alleged crimes committed while on the police force. (Cuyahoga County Prosecutor)

We're now in the second weekend of the NCAA tournament, and the men's bracket includes a No. 11 seed (Texas), No. 9 seed (Iowa) and No. 6 seed (Tennessee) in the Sweet Sixteen.

Why it matters: The 57% of people who used AI to help them with their March Madness brackets, per a Hard Rock Bet survey, may now be having second thoughts.

What they're saying: "AI isn't designed to predict random events," Sheldon H. Jacobson, a professor of computer science at the University of Illinois, told Axios before the tournament began. "It's designed to look for patterns."

How it works: Jacobson recommended prompting AI to analyze multiple simulated brackets and track patterns.

• AI can simulate outcomes randomly or based on certain stats, seedings or historical trends.

💭 Sam's thought bubble: I didn't use AI to help me with my bracket, and I wouldn't, as I view the process as a personal and largely instinctual game of chance.

• I pick schools with ferocious or original mascots, schools with goofy names, schools with Cleveland ties, etc.
• Sometimes I'll pick a ludicrous upset, just for fun: I picked Troy over Nebraska in the first round this year, for example, in honor of Troy Smith.

🏆 By the numbers: Sam is still afloat in the Axios bracket challenge. Before the Sweet 16 began, he ranked 27th out of 55 on the men's side. Troy was ranked 10th.

• In the women's bracket, Sam is 10th out of 16. Troy is third.

As you saw earlier this week, the price of gas just keeps on rising.

By the numbers: The national average gas price was hovering just under $4 per gallon, at $3.981, as of yesterday morning.

Yes, but: Almost a third of the country (110.8 million people) lives in states that have crossed that psychologically significant threshold.

Zoom in: Most of the highest-priced stations in Northeast Ohio topped out at $3.99 as of early yesterday afternoon, per GasBuddy.

Stunning fact: Before the war began, three states — California, Washington and Hawai'i — had gas prices above $4.

• There were 20 yesterday morning.