Dino might

Mother and baby T-rex at Walking with Dinosaurs. (Credit: Joan Marcus photo)

As most kids' shows go, the parents usually get a bigger kick out of watching their children watch the action than actually watching the show themselves. You know, shows like "Sesame Street Live," "VegiTales," "Curious George Live!"

But "Walking With Dinosaurs -- The Arena Spectacular" plays to all ages. The touring production includes eight shows at Conseco Fieldhouse, July 8 through July 12.

"I've even seen lots of 20- and 30-somethings at the show on a date night," said Nellie Beavers, associate tour manager whose resume includes productions like "Dora the Explorer, Live!" and "Go Diego Go, Live!" "Some of them grew up in the dinosaur craze."

While skeletal exhibits of towering dinos are always a big draw at museums, "Walking With Dinosaurs" creates a "being there" factor impossible to duplicate in a museum space.

The show, which travels in 25 semi-trucks, is based on the critically acclaimed BBC documentary "Walking With Dinosaurs." It took six years and $20 million to create the production.

During the 161/27-hour show, a narrator/paleontologist named Huxley and 15 life-sized animatronic puppets -- representing 10 different species -- lead visitors through three eras in dinosaur history, from evolution to extinction.

Creatures such as the Stegosaurus, Allosaurus, Tyrannosaurus rex and a 72-foot tall Brachiosauras roam the arena floor amid a natural-like setting. An audio and visual production simulates earthquakes, volcanoes and comets and the primal roars of the dinosaurs.

Concealed are the hydraulic hoses and cables, foam, batteries, motors and microprocessors that control the movements of the 161/27-ton creatures. "People think it's all automated, but each dinosaur is operated by two puppeteers -- one is responsible for moving the tail, head and body and the other responsible for the eyes, mouth and the sounds -- and a concealed driver moves it from Point A to Point B," Beavers said.

Five of the smaller dinosaurs are operated by men inside the heavy dino "suits."

When scouting the fledgling tour two years ago at United Center in Chicago, Conseco Fieldhouse representative Jeff Johnson acknowledged he didn't know what to expect.

"But in the next two hours I felt as if we had gone back billions of years," recalled Johnson, associate director for marketing and strategic planning.

Because of the size of the dinosaurs and the sounds they make, Beavers acknowledges a certain scare factor for some children. The T-rex even threatens to leave the arena floor and climb through the crowd, and a couple of Torosauruses prepare to duke it out, but no violent acts are carried out.

"The kids start out a little nervous sometimes," said Beavers. "But once they get used to them, they are on the edge of their seats the rest of the show. They don't want to leave."