Look the Tyrannosaurus in the eye
Written: Nov 04 '09 (Updated Nov 06 '09)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Life sized realistic looking Dinosaurs, elaborate motion control and puppeteer work, powerful sound.
Cons: Flash Photographers, American Airline Center Management.
The Bottom Line: The theatrical version of “Walking with the Dinosaurs” is an amazing show. It is very well done and the large and believable Dinosaurs are quite impressive. Kids love it.
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| texas-swede's Full Review: Walking with Dinosaurs: The Arena Spectacular |
We have seen the Walking with the Dinosaur show twice, both times at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas (the home of the Mavericks and the Dallas Stars). The first time we saw it was about two years ago and we sat in Mark Cuban's private box (his lawyer invited us). The second time was one and a half week ago and we sat on the first row so we got really close to the Dinosaurs. We paid $72.00 per ticket for those seats.
Walking with the Dinosaurs
This Arena show is based on the BBC series walking with the Dinosaurs. It is created by an Australian company "Creature Production Company" in association with BBC Worldwide. The show narrates the story of the Dinosaurs starting from their appearance on earth until their extinction. Life sized Dinosaur puppets are used in the show which is why arenas are required (some of these puppets are 56 feet). Large speakers are used to create thundering low-pitch roars and growls, sounds of thunderstorms, torrential rains, and meteor explosions.
The entrance into the arena is framed by a teethed mouth with teeth that are probably around 20-30 feet tall. The middle of the arena features large motion controlled rocks, which at times are used to represent the great super continents Pangaea and Gondwanaland. Around the arena are replicas of ancient plants. The plants change as the years (millions of years) pass. There are also huge screens and an elaborate network of cables high above the arena which is used for Pterosaurs (giant flying reptiles). The Dinosaurs roam around the arena, fight each other, kill each other, and interact with each other in other ways. The show is 96 minutes long.
The show is touring the world and it has been to Australia, Great Britain, North America, and Europe. Currently they are in San Antonio, Texas, and before that they were in Dallas, Texas. After San Antonio the next stop is Corpus Christi Texas, and then Hidalgo and Cedar Park in Texas. At the end of December they visit Detroit. To check the US tour schedule check this link.
http://www.dinosaurlive.com/tickets/us/
This is the web site
http://www.dinosaurlive.com
Interestingly enough the European tour was in Stockholm the same time as the American tour was in Dallas (I am a Swede living in Dallas).
The Dinosaurs
The Dinosaurs are life size and extremely real looking. We don't know much about how the Dinosaurs skin actually looked like, however, in terms of giving you the feeling that you were looking at the real animal and not a giant puppet, they did an awesome job. The puppet costume is extremely elaborate and it looks like real skin. The gait and the movements is that of a large animal, and the eyes and the extremities move in a convincing manner.
The large Dinosaurs consist of vehicles operated by a driver, two voodoo puppeteers (three people per Dinosaur), and an elaborate system of hydraulics, motors and microprocessors for motion control. The small Dinosaurs (suit Dinosaurs) are people wearing realistic Dinosaur costumes. I should say that you can see the legs of the people wearing the suit Dinosaurs which somewhat detracted from the feel of realism. The featured large dinosaur species are: Allosaurus, Ankylosaurus, Brachiosaurus, Liliensternus, Ornithocerious, Plateosaurus, Stegosaurus, Torosaurus, Tyrannosaurus Rex, and Utahraptor.
The story of the Dinosaurs
The story begins 248 million years ago when the largest known extinction occurred and the beginning of the Triassic period and the Mesozoic era began. During the Triassic era the first Dinosaurs appear and after a brief introduction the first dinosaur comes running into the arena. Even though this dinosaur is relatively small the audience is astounded by how real it looks and how ferocious it seems.
However, what follows is even more impressive. Larger and larger Dinosaurs enter the arena as millions of years passes by. The Dinosaurs hunt, defend their young, flee, and they fight for various reasons. You all know how the story ends; in a huge explosion 65 million years ago. However, there is a little surprise that follows that mass extinction. The story continues today. The entire story is narrated by a paleontologist who will also teach you about the Dinosaurs. In addition he had some clever puns up his sleeve.
Our first row experience
If you sit in the first row you will get very close to the Dinosaurs. In fact the Tyrannosaurus menacing jaws will nearly pass above your head. If you sit where we did you can see their eyes moving and the texture of their skin. The puppets are really well made. However, if you sit further away (like we did the previous time) you get the advantage of being able to see the entire arena. I should say that if you sit in the first row you will miss a little bit of the show because of the obstruction of the rocks in the middle of the arena, but not much. I would recommend a front row seat. Well unless you have a pal who invites you to sit in a box, with food everything. That is pretty nice.
When the Tyrannosaurs walked by where we were sitting I felt somewhat nervous. I knew it wasn't real but that huge scary beast looked quite real. When the Tyrannosaurs roared it seemed like it was coming from the huge gaping jaws even though it was coming from a couple of large loud speakers. A few impressive scenes were two huge Torosaurus fighting, a Torosaurus and a Tyrannosaur fighting, a Tyrannosaurus mother defending her baby, and an Allosaurus attacking Brachiosaurus. Seeing this action close up was an experience.
It was slightly dark which increased the tension and probably hid some imperfections as well. The arena was slightly lit while the audience was sitting in darkness. It was not so dark that there was a problem seeing what was going on in the arena ort difficult to find your way out.
The American Airline Center Management deserves a scolding
Before the show started we were told not to do any flash photography. As expected there is always a minority that will disregard such requests at the expense of everyone else. There were a few thousand spectators in the arena and about 30 individuals incessantly and continuously kept taking flash photographs. Since the show was performed in slight darkness this became an irritation. What was even more astounding was that most of these people were taking their photos, with flash, a couple of hundred feet away from the arena. As you probably know this renders the flash useless. 1% of the audience was partially ruining the show for the other 99% and they did not even have any benefit from it themselves. So I asked a guard why they did not tell these few individuals to stop. The guard told me that the American Airlines Management had told them to let the offenders off the hook unless it got really bad. How thoughtless! Maybe a few people should be allowed to chat on their cell phones the next time the American Airlines Management goes to see a movie.
Final Recommendation
The show is extremely well done, elaborate, and breathtaking. The Dinosaurs are huge and very realistic looking and the decorations are simply astounding. The show is definitely worth the money, especially if you have kids. If you want to get close up to the Dinosaurs you should buy a front seat ticket (like we did the second time). If you want to get a good overview of what is happening in the arena you should sit further away. Take your kids to this show. They will love it. However, considering the lax flash photography policy at the American Airlines Arena I suggest you see it somewhere else.
Finally I would like to thank Chris (cr01) for adding this entry to the epinions data base.
Recommended:
Yes
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