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'allo allosaurus, the BBC's greatest live show on earth
Amar Singh12.11.08
DINOSAURS are roaming the earth once again - in a spectacular £10 million show that will conquer London next summer.
Based on the award-winning BBC TV series Walking With Dinosaurs, The Arena Spectacular has won widespread acclaim during two sell-out tours in Australia and America and promises to be one of the most groundbreaking shows ever seen in Britain.
Featuring 15 realistic, snarling and roaring animatronic dinosaurs, the show will take over the O2 arena for five nights from 5-9 August followed by six nights at Wembley Arena from 26-31 August.
The cast includes an allosaurus, a torosaurus and a utahraptor. The largest, the brachiosaurus, is 36 feet tall and 56 feet from nose to tail. Top billing goes to a terrifying 20ft tyrannosaurus rex which, in a dramatic climax, tries to protect her baby from predators.
Tim Haines, creator and producer of the original BBC series, worked on the live show as a consultant. He said: "At its core, the spectacular manages to do what the TV series did so successfully, which is to make people imagine they are looking at real dinosaurs." The beasts are operated by "voodoo puppetry" which involves a backstage team manipulating miniature versions with the same range of movements as the life-sized counterparts. Movements of the puppets are replicated on stage.
Newsweek hailed it as "that rare entertainment beast that parents and kids can enjoy together". Variety said the dinosaurs are "stunning and faultlessly nimble".
The show has been seen by two million Americans, including Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. Tickets go on sale tomorrow.
