Cincinnati Opera celebrates its historic roots at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden with the sixth annual Back to the Zoo Concert On 5/19

On Tuesday, May 19, Cincinnati Opera celebrates its historic roots at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden with the sixth 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 an informal reception featuring complimentary refreshments and ice cream and a cash bar. Tickets are free, but reservations are required. A dinner buffet may also be pre-purchased through Cincinnati Opera.

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 the best-loved songs of opera and Broadway. The program will feature several young artists, and a special guest appearance by young musicians from MYCincinnati. MYCincinnati (Music for Youth in Cincinnati) is a free youth orchestra program for children in Price Hill, inspired by the groundbreaking El Sistema program in Venezuela.

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 now available through the Cincinnati Opera Box Office. See full details below.

For more information, please visit www.cincinnatiopera.org.


Cincinnati Opera and Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden present

Back to the Zoo

Sponsored by The Marge & Charles J. Schott Foundation

Date: Tuesday, May 19, 2015

Time:

6:00 p.m. Reception with complimentary refreshments and ice cream, and a cash bar

7:00 p.m. Concert

Dinner Buffet: An optional dinner buffet may be purchased in advance for $17 per person. Deadline to order is May 12.

Location: Wings of Wonder Theater, Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, 3400 Vine Street, Cincinnati, OH 45220

Parking: Parking is $6 after 5:00 p.m. Park in the Vine Street Lot and enter via the Historic Vine Street Plaza.

Tickets: FREE, but reservations are required. Limit 4 tickets per household. Tickets are available beginning today through the Cincinnati Opera Box Office. Call (513) 241-2742, order online atmy.cincinnatiopera.org using the promo code ROAR, or visit the box office in the Corbett Opera Center at Music Hall, 1243 Elm Street, downtown. Box office hours are Monday through Friday,10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.