Group's back-to-back shows at the zoo Aug. 18-19 are nearly sold out
What says summer in Portland like Pink Martini at the Oregon Zoo? Having played the zoo more than 10 times since 2005, the "little orchestra" will once again make it a double this year, with back-to-back shows Aug. 18 and 19 as part of the zoo's summer concert series presented by Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Oregon with support from U.S. Bank and your local Toyota dealers. The first show is sold out, but tickets are still available for Aug. 19.
Drawing inspiration from the romantic Hollywood musicals of the '40s and '50s, Pink Martini adds a global perspective, championing music from many different cultures. With 12 musicians (and sometimes a string section), the group has performed its multilingual repertoire on concert stages and with symphony orchestras throughout the world.
Pink Martini made its European debut at the Cannes Film Festival in 1997 and its orchestral debut with the Oregon Symphony in 1998 under the direction of Norman Leyden. Since then, the band has gone on to play with more than 25 orchestras, including multiple engagements with the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl, the Boston Pops, the National Symphony at the Kennedy Center and the BBC Concert Orchestra in London.
Tickets for Pink Martini's Aug. 19 zoo show are $34 and can be purchased at the zoo during normal operating hours. Tickets can also be purchased (with service charge) at all Ticketmaster ticket centers, online at Ticketmaster.com and by phone at 800-745-3000. Purchase of a concert ticket allows entry into the zoo after 4 p.m; the concert begins at 7 p.m.
The zoo concert series will be showcasing a variety of world-renowned artists through September — from blues legend Buddy Guy to country royalty Roseanne Cash to classic-rock favorites Chicago.
In 1979, the Oregon Zoo became the first in America to host a summer concert series. Now, the series is one of the top outdoor events in the Northwest, and is the region's longest continuously running outdoor series.
Oregon Zoo Summer Concerts is presented by Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Oregon with support from U.S. Bank and your local Toyota dealers, and media support from The Oregonian.
The Oregon Zoo is a service of Metro and is dedicated to its mission of inspiring the community to create a better future for wildlife. Committed to conservation, the zoo is currently working to save endangered California condors, Columbia Basin pygmy rabbits, Oregon silverspot and Taylor’s checkerspot butterflies, Western pond turtles and Oregon spotted frogs. Other projects include studies on black rhinos, Asian elephants, polar bears and bats.
The zoo relies in part on community support through donations to the Oregon Zoo Foundation to undertake these and many other animal welfare, education and sustainability programs. The zoo is located five minutes from downtown Portland, just off Highway 26 at exit 72. The zoo is also accessible by MAX light rail line. Visitors who travel to the zoo via MAX receive $1.50 off zoo admission. Find fare and route information online or by calling TriMet Customer Service at 503-238-RIDE (7433).
General zoo admission is $10.50 (ages 12-64), $9 for seniors (65 and up), $7.50 for children (ages 3-11) and free for those 2 and younger; 25 cents of the admission price helps fund regional conservation projects through the zoo’s Future for Wildlife program. A parking fee of $4 per car is also required. Additional information is available by calling 503-226-1561.
Hova Najarian at 503-220-5714 or hova.najarian@oregonzoo.org