On the shores of Lake Erie, there’s an old-fashioned resort called Lakeside Chautauqua. Every summer they present dozens of shows in their historic, 2600-seat theater:  musicians, dancers, writers, comedians, speakers, and more. One of their most popular family events has long been a visit from some animals from the Columbus Zoo.

I met their event planners at a conference in Ohio and, together, we hatched a plan to have me share the stage with the Zoo. We debuted the program in 2025 and I was delighted to be invited back in 2026.

The zoo and I take turns–I sing “Anaconda La Bamba,” and they introduce their python. I sing “Heavy Metal Moose,” and they bring out their skunk (another animal you should keep your distance from!). I sing about the super-fast cheetah and they show the super-slow sloth. It’s fun to see how I can connect my songs with their animals. And I always learn a little something from the amazing educators.

I based this format on the programs I developed WAY back in the mid-90s at the Austin Zoo, so it felt like old times. With the moniker “singing zoologist,” people still expect me to have live animals in my shows and this is pretty much the only way I’d do that today.

Since the animals are small, Lakeside has live video projecting on either side of the stage from three cameras. The Zoo educators also carry the animals up and down the aisles and there’s a meet-and-greet where folks get to get up close and personal with a couple of the more well-behaved animals.

I’ve been fortunate to perform in some amazing places in my career and these shows with are right up there in my top ten. Here’s crossing my fingers they have me back in ’27!