Reviewed by Louise Totton
My husband and I were delighted to be invited along to see Erth’s Dinosaur Zoo Live with our 6 year old and 3 year old daughters at St George’s Hall in Bradford today.
St George’s Hall is located in the centre of Bradford, and is signposted very well from the M606, and only took us about 10 minutes from the motorway. There is lots of car-parking locally; we parked at the NCP car park at Hall Ings as discounted parking is available for theatre goers.
We have seen lots of shows at St George’s, both family shows and more grown-up type offerings, and we are always really impressed with the venue. It’s a lovely theatre and the staff are always very helpful, knowledgeable and professional.
Dinosaur Zoo Live is a hybrid between a wildlife documentary and a theatre show. The girls were hugely excited when we arrived to see the giant trees on the stage, and we took our seats and waited excitedly for the show to start.
The show is mostly fronted by one presenter, who introduces each of the dinosaurs and tells the audience facts about their habitats, when they lived and their diets. We meet the dinosaurs one by one, and as each dinosaur is introduced, children are invited on stage to help out with the demonstrations.
The dinosaurs themselves are puppets of varying sizes, from tiny babies to enormous insects, T-Rex’s and my favourite, the very friendly tyrannosaur. The puppets really are quite fabulous in their movements, the sounds they make and the interaction with the audience. As I looked around the theatre, adults and children alike were utterly rapt by the prehistoric creatures in front of them.
Most of the children in the audience absolutely loved the interactive nature of the show and were clambering to be chosen to go up on stage. The staff at the theatre managed the throng really well, which kept it safe for everyone. The show is marketed at ages 3+, and this is pretty accurate. Some of the younger kids (my three year old included) were a little scared at times, but I think in many ways that’s down to the nature of the child rather than the show.
At the end of the show, the dinosaurs hung around to meet the children, which was a really nice touch for them and they were excitedly talking about it in the car on the way home.
We thoroughly enjoyed the show, and felt that at 60 minutes (no interval), it was probably about right in length. The show seemed to be enjoyed equally by the adults and the children in the audience, my husband particularly enjoyed it. The educational nature of the show was impressive too and my eldest has lots of new dino-facts to tell her teacher in school tomorrow.
We had a really lovely time.
Rating: 5/5
Tickets cost from £14 to £16.50 (booking fees may apply).
Dinosaur Zoo Live is at St George’s Hall in Bradford until 4 November 2015. For more information or to book tickets click here or call the box office on 01274 432000.
St George’s Hall. Bridge St, Bradford, West Yorkshire, BD1 1JT | 01274 432000
