"Bonobos to Broadway" Special Event to Discuss Connection Between Columbus Zoo and Aquarium and Broadway Musical Come From Away December 5

The Tony Award-winning Broadway musical COME FROM AWAY tells the remarkable true story of 7,000 airline passengers unexpectedly stranded in the small town of Gander on the island of Newfoundland, Canada, when 38 planes from around the globe were rerouted to its airport during the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. The planes also contained several animals, one of which was a bonobo (an endangered great ape) named Unga who was traveling from Belgium to her new home at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium.

On Sunday, December 5, PNC Broadway in Columbus and the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium present Bonobos to Broadway, a special event at the Columbus Zoo’s Africa Event Center featuring a panel discussion with Bonnie Harris (manager of the Gander and Area Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals that helped care for Unga during her time in Gander), Audra Meinelt (curator of the Columbus Zoo’s Congo Expedition region), Petrina Bromley (actress who originated the role of Bonnie Harris on Broadway), and Sue Frost (producer of Come From Away). During the discussion, they will talk about the show, Unga, and the incredible five days she spent in Gander.

From 2:30-3 pm, event guests may attend a special Keeper Chat in the bonobo area of the Congo Expedition region. The Bonobos to Broadway panel discussion will begin at 3:30 pm in the Africa Event Center.

Tickets for PNC Broadway in Columbus subscribers and Columbus Zoo members are $40, and tickets for the general public are $45. Tickets can be purchased online at ColumbusZoo.org. Zoo admission prior to the event and parking are included. Light, complimentary hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar will be available.

About Bonnie Harris, manager of the Gander and Area SPCA
Bonnie Harris has been involved with the Gander and Area SPCA for more than 26 years, serving as manager for more than 20. She also spends time assisting her veterinarian brother with his mobile spay and neuter clinics in remote areas of Newfoundland where there are no veterinary services available. Harris comes from a large family where all five siblings were taught a love and respect for animals. Her career began at a young age, feeding and housing stray dogs and cats as well as raising orphaned birds until they were well enough to be released back into the wild. She has been married to husband Doug for 35 years and has three wonderful daughters—Ashley, Megan, and Jaimee—and one beautiful grandson, Charlie.

About Petrina Bromley, actress who originated the role of Bonnie Harris on Broadway
Petrina Bromley proudly hails from Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Theatre: Persistence Theatre, What Hangs in the Balance; Stratford Festival, As You Like It, The Hypochondriac; Royal Alexandra/La Jolla Playhouse/Seattle Rep, Come From Away; National Arts Centre, Enron, The Sound of Music, Tartuffe, Metamorphoses; Artistic Fraud of Newfoundland, Oil and Water; AfterImage; Fear of Flight. TV: “Surreal Estate,” “Son of a Critch,” “Republic of Doyle.” @petieb @petrinabromley

About Audra Meinelt, curator of the Columbus Zoo’s Congo Expedition region
Audra Meinelt began working at the Columbus Zoo in 1996 as a seasonal zookeeper in the North America region and moved into a full-time zookeeper role in 1997 in the African Forest region (now called Congo Expedition). She has remained in this department at the Columbus Zoo for the last 24 years. Meinelt is also the coordinator for the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ (AZA) Colobus Monkey and Bonobo Species Survival Programs® (SSP), as well as the vice coordinator for the Mandrill SSP. Additionally, she serves as chair of the AZA Old World Monkey Taxon Advisory Group (TAG) and is a member of the Gorilla SSP Management Group. Meinelt is especially proud of the Columbus Zoo’s work with bonobos, which includes participating in many studies that explore growth, hormones, aggression, and reconciliation and heart health for the species.

About Sue Frost, producer
Sue Frost is a founding member of Junkyard Dog Productions, a Tony® and Olivier® Award-winning production company dedicated to developing and producing new musical theatre. The company is currently the producer of the hit musical COME FROM AWAY (Olivier, Outer Critics Circle, Drama Desk winner Best Musical) on Broadway, in Toronto and London, and in various venues across North America and Australia.

About Unga
Unga was born at the Wild Animal Park Mechelen Planckendael (Royal Zoological Society of Antwerp) in Belgium on February 22, 1993. She passed away from heart disease on March 5, 2020, at the age of 29. Two of her offspring remain in the care of the Columbus Zoo—Gander (born in 2003) and Jerry (born in 2008). Gander was Unga’s first offspring, and the animal care team named him in honor of the city that had shown so much compassion to his mother.

About bonobos
Bonobos are the least known species of great ape, with only 5,000-50,000 estimated to be living in the equatorial forests of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) lists bonobos as endangered, primarily due to habitat destruction through logging and bush meat hunting. Research has shown that bonobos and people share more than 98 percent of the same DNA. The Columbus Zoo is one of only seven facilities in North America that currently house bonobos, the last ape species to be discovered by western scientists.

COME FROM AWAY plays the Ohio Theatre February 8-13, 2022. Tickets start at $39 and can be purchased in-person at the CBUSArts Ticket Center (39 E. State St.), online at www.capa.com, or by phone at (614) 469-0939.