ROYAL OAK, Mich., August 11, 2008 – The Detroit Zoo will celebrate Metro Detroit’s Arab-Chaldean community and culture at the Arab-Chaldean Festival on Saturday, August 23, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.  The event is part of Summer Festivals at the Detroit Zoo…Like Nowhere Else, presented by Comcast.  Activities will take place in the plaza east of the Ford Education Center and are free with the cost of Zoo admission.  Comcast subscribers who show their bill at the ticket booth receive $2 off one adult admission.

The Arab-Chaldean Festival will feature live entertainment, including music by Ara Topouzian and dance performances by Troupe Ta’amullat.  There will also be food available for purchase from local Middle Eastern restaurants, calligraphy demonstrations, henna art, and enrichment activities with animals from Middle Eastern countries.  

Also supported by Comerica Charitable Foundation, the Summer Festivals at the Detroit Zoo celebrate the cultural diversity of the Metro Detroit community.  Each festival includes activities such as live entertainment, storytelling, arts and crafts, and a community resource area.  Earlier this summer, the Zoo hosted festivals celebrating the Asian, Hispanic/Latino and African cultures.

The Detroit Zoological Society is a non-profit organization that operates the Detroit Zoo and Belle Isle Nature Zoo.  Situated on 125 acres of naturalistic exhibits, the Detroit Zoo is located at the intersection of Ten Mile Road and Woodward Avenue, just off I-696, in Royal Oak.  The Detroit Zoo is open daily 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. April through October (open at 9:30 a.m. Memorial Day through Labor Day) – with extended hours until 8 p.m. Wednesdays during July and August – and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. November through March.  Admission is $11 for adults 13 to 61, $9 for senior citizens 62 and older, and $7 for children ages 2 to 12; children under 2 are free.  For more information, call (248) 541-5717 or visit www.detroitzoo.org.  The Belle Isle Nature Zoo is open daily 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. year-round and provides educational programming with interpretive staff support from the Huron-Clinton Metroparks.  For more information, call (313) 852-4056. 
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