A production touring the region at the start of the school holidays could make show and tell pretty interesting next term.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
We get everything from just pure, unadulterated enjoyment and thrill, to caution and trepidation,
- Scott Wright
“I went to the beach!”
“Nan and Pop came to stay!”
“I got to feed a dinosaur!”
Imagine Steve Irwin, but with dinosaurs instead of crocs. That’s how the writer and artistic director of Erth’s Dinosaur Zoo has described the show, which will visit six towns and cities in this region this month.
“I like to think of it as a live animal presentation, something you’d expect at any good zoo or wildlife park - the only difference is that all of our creatures are dinosaurs,” Scott Wright says.
“We love to take them and show them to kids.
“On occasion, we will invite some children to come up and help us during the show.
“Those children get to help us feed the dinosaurs, or give them water, or look after them if they’re sick.
“And if the children misbehave, we feed them to the dinosaurs.
“We charge extra for that.”
Erth is a Sydney-based visual and physical theatre company, which was established about 25 years ago and takes shows across Australia and the world.
“We get everything from just pure, unadulterated enjoyment and thrill, to caution and trepidation,” Scott says of Erth’s Dinosaur Zoo - no matter the age of the child.
“I think the thing we’ve learnt time and time again is that, if you set an age limit for something, there’ll always be a kid that’s younger that will be an exception to that rule.
“So a three-year-old could hold their own against a T-rex, where an 11-year-old could freak.”
However, Scott says the life-size puppets “get reactions from everybody” - not just the kids.
“We focus on creatures that come from Australia, specifically, so it is also very unique,” he said.
The performers in Erth’s Dinosaur Zoo are “really diverse”.
“Most people come to us as performers or artists,” Scott says.
“It’s a show that talks directly to the audience and invites them to respond and sometimes to participate.
“So it’s really important that all those people are good communicators who like to have a chat with a complete stranger, who care about whether or not a child who has a vision impairment gets a valid experience, and might invite them backstage so they can feel the dinosaurs, get to feel what they couldn’t see so well.”
Erth’s Dinosaur Zoo will be at: Chapel Theatre, Glen Innes, on September 25.
Craig Thomson
I am a media and communications professional with experience across print, digital, social and radio broadcasts. I am currently the Editor of Australian Community Media's Launceston Examiner.
I am a media and communications professional with experience across print, digital, social and radio broadcasts. I am currently the Editor of Australian Community Media's Launceston Examiner.
