Cautiously in favor
I say 'cautiously' because, while I'm supportive of good presentations which balance education and entertainment, I've seen some truly horrendous shows that have no educational content whatsoever, and could best be described as recycled circus acts.
Some of the worst examples of these circus-like shows can be found at any Sea World park in the United States (I know practically nothing about the Australian park of the same name, and am not prepared to judge until I have seen).
The worst offenders along these lines are, by far, the whale shows. I had the misfortune to be subjected to one back in 2002, when Sea World Orlando played host for the annual IMATA conference. More specifically, the show at the time was "Shamu Rocks America." It consisted of little more than a series of allegedly "classic" snippets of rock music from various eras, coupled with a few leaps and breaches from the whales, and lots of colored MIDI-sequenced lighting and trainers running around in luridly-colored wetsuits.
Educational content? Forget it. Unless you considered the rock tracks to be a refresher course in mediocre music.
This show bears the unique distinction of being the ONLY animal show I've attended in my entire life that left me feeling physically sick afterwards. Yes, it really was that bad. You could have done the entire thing without the whales, on a Las Vegas stage, and I don't think it would have made the slightest difference.
There are also shows that try to appear educational, but fail miserably, often due to problems on the part of the presenter. One such can be found in the form of the "Radical Raptors" birds-of-prey show at the Greater Vancouver Zoo. The main presenter of that show, one Gary Worley, is so patronizing and obnoxious to the audience that I think it's a miracle he doesn't drive more people away.
At the opposite end of the spectrum are shows which go too far towards the 'education' side, and become very dry and downright sleep-inducing as a result. They bear more resemblance to a dull college lecture than any sort of animal demonstration.
The best shows balance right in the middle. They have at least enough educational content to answer some obvious questions about the animals involved, yet they deliver what they have in an entertaining manner that keeps the audience's interest up. The best ones create intense curiosity in the audience, thus encouraging them to find out more on their own.
A good example of such can be found at the San Diego Wild Animal Park, more specifically in their birds-of-prey demonstrations. The free-flight work they've done is nothing short of amazing (such as releasing one of their falcons from a remote-controlled cage, suspended about 1000 feet in the air by a large balloon, and having them stoop on a lure at stage level). They also have some unique raptors that you don't see very often, such as condors and vultures. Best of all, by the time the show ends, you'll know lots of raptor facts without even realizing how you picked them up.
And that's why I say 'cautiously' in favor. It all depends on the show itself, and who's presenting it.
Happy travels.
