So you think you know about Dinosaurs Review | Tyne Theatre & Opera House

*We were provided with Press tickets to review this production

Half term got off to a flying start this week with a trip to Tyne Theatre and Opera House to join in with 'So you think you know about Dinosaurs'. We started our afternoon with a trip to Meet and Treat which is a fab child-friendly cafe on Bath Lane and a stone's throw away from the theatre. I would HIGHLY recommend Meet and Treat as a place to stop for drinks before/after a show at the Tyne Theatre but there will be more on that tomorrow.........

Back to the Tyne Theatre and the show. I must admit that I haven't taken my children to this kind of show before and I did wonder if they could sit for 2 hours in front of one man talking about dinosaurs. H, H and J all LOVE dinosaurs and are always full of facts so I hoped it would be ok. 

So you think you know about Dinosaurs features TV Scientist Ben Garrod who takes to the stage and helps the audience figure out the answers to some curious questions. There are no special effects or mocked up dinosaurs - it's just Ben, his laptop and a couple of animations on a big screen. 

If anything, this production proves that you don't need lots of gimmicks to engage a young audience and Ben managed just fine without any props. He immediately had the kids on side as he quizzed us grown ups and told the kids not to help. H, H and J were beaming as I struggled with some of the more basic questions.

Ben describes the show as half way between a Science lesson and a panto and I think this is pretty spot on. In terms of the Science, we learned LOADS (well I did). Did you know that a chicken is actually a dinosaur? How about the three main features that identify something as a dinosaur? Or perhaps you'd like to learn what noise a dinosaur would make or what a T-Rex really looks like (clue - they were probably Ginger). Well this show has it all and I am sure even the biggest Dinosaur fan will learn something new. There was something for all ages but I would say that the show is probably best suited to ages 4-12 years and their families. 

Because Ben is an actual real life Scientist, the show is bang up to date and shares discoveries which have been made in the last few years, months and weeks - some of the 'facts' you may have read about in your textbooks at home will become null and void. Ben shared with us a few bits of insider knowledge of a brand new discovery which is probably the largest dinosaur uncovered to date. The dinosaur's exact name will be revealed in the next month or so and Harry has already set up a google alert so he's one of the first to find out! 

So you think you know about Dinosaurs was fully interactive with kids and grown ups being encouraged to answer questions, recall knowledge and add their opinion. The 2 hours flew by in no time. At the end, Ben took a few questions from the audience and even stayed behind in the foyer afterwards to answer any individual questions - what a guy!! 

What I really loved about this show is that it's main message was that anyone can have an opinion or have aspirations to grow up and be a Scientist. Ben taught us that we should always base our opinion on proof and used a few examples of how this is used in the Dinosaur world. Ben's enthusiasm was certainly infectious and on our bus journey home, H,H and J chattered enthusiastically about how they'd like to bring a Velociraptor back to life and keep one as a pet (apparently this is ok as they are just the size of a turkey).

We are so pleased we had the chance to spend the afternoon in Ben's company at Tyne Theatre & Opera House. Who knew learning over Half Term would be so fun? 

Sadly, So you think you know about Dinosaurs was only in town for one day only. You can keep up to date with future family-friendly performances at Tyne Theatre & Opera House by subscribing to their Facebook events here.

Don't miss Ben & Holly's Little Kingdom on 18th & 19th March, The Wizard of Oz Easter Panto on 15th & 16th April and Naomi's Wild and Scary Show on 17th April.