Avenue ZOO: A family-friendly production featuring Kate Monster from the Tony Award-winning musical Avenue Q

Family fun includes rainforest creature parades, character appearances, and a full line-up of entertainment on the main stage

June headliners include Ferdinand the Bull, Barney™ the Dinosaur, Ms. Frizzle from the Magic School Bus®, Super Sprowtz®, Olivia™, and The Amazing Spider-Man

Special story book reading with actor LeVar Burton of Reading Rainbow

Meet Olympic gold medalist Kristi Yamaguchi

Visit www.bronxzoo.com for a detailed schedule of showtimes and appearances

Weekends through Sunday, June 30

Bronx, N.Y. – June 5, 2012 – The family-friendly fun of Animal Tales Extravaganza at the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Bronx Zoo continues in June with a complete line-up of performances, entertainment, and activities for zoo-goers of all ages.

The original production of Avenue ZOO – featuring a guest appearance by Kate Monster, the beloved puppet star of the Tony Award-winning musical AVENUE Q – is running two shows a day on the Asia Plaza stage on weekends through Sunday, Sept. 9 and starting July 5th, Thursdays and Fridays through September. Avenue ZOO is a musical tale in which Kate Monster meets exotic animals and discovers that though they may seem strange and different, they are not so scary after all.

Animal Tales Extravaganza weekends also include the story time corner, presented by Plum Organics at the zoo’s Dancing Crane Pavilion where guests can take a break and read from a wide variety of animal-themed books from Simon & Schuster, Candlewick Press, and Hyperion. Children can then stage their own animal tale with a puppet they create at the Bright Horizons Early Education & Preschools crafts area.

The main stage features something new each weekend in June including:
• June 9 and 10 - Barney™ Sing-Along and Magic School Bus®
• June 16 and 17 - Super Sprowtz™
• June 30 – Spider-Man takes over the zoo

Children will enjoy meeting some of their favorite personalities at the Dancing Crane Pavilion. Meet-and-greets are scheduled with top children’s entertainment characters including Maisy™ Mouse, Olivia™, and Llama Llama.

On Saturday and Sunday, June 9 and 10, don’t miss the sing-along with children’s favorite Barney™ the Dinosaur. Ms. Frizzle from Scholastic’s Magic School Bus ® will be at the zoo for a special reading on the Asia Plaza stage on Sunday, June 10.

Actor LeVar Burton, host of the Peabody award-winning series Reading Rainbow will make an appearance on Saturday and Sunday, June 16 and 17 for a special storybook reading. LeVar will share his favorite tips and techniques to encourage young readers and host a special preview of the new Reading Rainbow iPad book discovery and reading application.

A full listing of Animal Tales Extravaganza dates and times is available at www.bronxzoo.com.

The Wildlife Conservation Society would like to thank the following companies for their help in making Animal Tales Extravaganza at the Bronx Zoo possible – Babies“R”Us; Bright Horizons Early Education & Preschools; Candlewick Press; Hyperion; Nickelodeon; Plum Organics; Simon & Schuster; Sprout; Toys“R”Us.

AVENUE Q – now in its 10th year in New York – is the winner of three Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and has been produced in countries around the world. For performance and ticket information to AVENUE Q call Tele-charge at 212-239-6200 or visit www.avenueq.com.