CINCINNATI OPERA AND CINCINNATI ZOO PRESENT “BACK TO THE ZOO,” A FREE, FAMILY-FRIENDLY CONCERT AT CINCINNATI ZOO ON JULY 5
The public is invited to a delightful evening of arias, animals, and nostalgia, hosted by Evans Mirageas of Cincinnati Opera and Thane Maynard of Cincinnati Zoo.
Sponsored by The Marge & Charles J. Schott Foundation
CINCINNATI—On Thursday, July 5, Cincinnati Opera celebrates its historic roots at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden with the third annual “Back to the Zoo” Concert, presented at the Wings of Wonder Theater. Opera fans, Zoo lovers, and people of all ages are invited for a fun, family-friendly program of opera delights, memories from the Zoo days, and close encounters with animals. The celebration, generously sponsored by The Marge & Charles J. Schott Foundation, will open with a convivial reception featuring hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar. Tickets are free, but reservations are required.
Hosted by Evans Mirageas, The Harry T. Wilks Artistic Director of Cincinnati Opera, and Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden Executive Director Thane Maynard, the concert will commemorate the Opera’s most celebrated memories from the Zoo with some of opera’s best-loved songs. Performances by Katy Lindhart, Emily Lorini, Luis Alejandro Orozco, and Luther Lewis will be mingled with exciting visits from furry, scaly, and feathered Zoo friends. Songs will include such favorites as “O mio babbino caro,” “I Got Rhythm,” “Some Enchanted Evening,” and “Una furtiva lagrima.”
On June 27, 1920, Cincinnati Opera presented its first opera, a production of Martha, in an outdoor pavilion at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden. For the next half-century, performances at the Cincinnati Zoo Pavilion filled a 10-week season that regularly featured some of the most legendary singers of the 20th century—Plácido Domingo, Norman Treigle, Beverly Sills, Sherrill Milnes, Montserrat Caballé, James Morris, and Roberta Peters, to name a few. Cincinnati Opera moved to Music Hall in 1972, but the partnership between the Opera and the Zoo continues to the present day.
Tickets are available through the Cincinnati Opera Box Office at (513) 241-2742. For more information, please visit www.cincinnatiopera.org.
Cincinnati Opera and Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden present “Back to the Zoo” Concert
Sponsored by The Marge & Charles J. Schott Foundation
Date: Thursday, July 5, 2012
Time:
6:00 p.m. Reception with refreshments and cash bar
7:00 p.m. Concert
Location:
Wings of Wonder Theater, Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, 3400 Vine Street, Cincinnati, OH 45220
Parking will be $5 after 5:00 p.m. Park in the Vine Street Lot and enter the Historic Vine Street Plaza.
Tickets: FREE, but reservations are required. To reserve, call the Cincinnati Opera Box Office at (513) 241-2742.
“Back to the Zoo” Concert is sponsored by The Marge & Charles J. Schott Foundation.
Cincinnati Opera’s 2012 Summer Festival continues through July 28, featuring The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess and Giuseppe Verdi’s La Traviata. Cincinnati Opera’s 2012 Season Presenting Sponsor is PNC. The 2012 season is also made possible with support from ArtsWave, Ohio Arts Council, The Louise Dieterle Nippert Musical Arts Fund, and many generous individuals, corporations, and foundations.
