Jurassic Parkclays: dinosaurs invade Brooklyn

Barclays Center hosts 'Walking With Dinosaurs'

July 18, 2014 By Rob Abruzzese Brooklyn Daily Eagle

The Allosaurus is not as big as the T-Rex at 14.5 feet tall and 43 feet long

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This weekend the Barclays Center will travel back in time to when dinosaurs roamed the earth — and this time it has nothing to do with Kevin Garnett.

“Walking with Dinosaurs: the Arena Spectacular” is set to run from July 16 to 20 and will feature 20 accurately-sized dinosaurs that stand up to 36 feet tall and 56 feet long roaming the stage in the Barclays Center in a production that educates attendees, bringing to life the dino-loving kid in everyone.

“Alex is obsessed with dinosaurs and it’s his birthday so we thought this would be the perfect thing to bring him to,” said Jessica Phelps, who said she brought her 3-year-old, Alex, and 6-year-old, Madison, to the show. “It’s fun for the kids and hopefully they can learn something about dinosaurs, too.”

Alex loves the Brachiosaurus, and his sister’s favorite is the Tyrannosaurus Rex.

Four-year-old Romeo Solano unleashed a “Roar” when asked who his favorite was, referring to the T-Rex.

The show is based on the award-winning BBC television series. It has been performed more than 2,000 times in 243 cities. This is the first time it has stopped in New York City since 2010. The show takes the audience on a journey through time as it tells the tale of the dinosaurs including volcanic eruptions, comets and battles for survival.

There are 20 dinosaurs in the show representing 10 different species that lived over the span of 200 million years. The Tyrannosaurus Rex is one of the largest, standing at 23-feet tall and 42-feet long. The largest of the show is the Brachiosaurus at 36-feet tall and 56-feet long.

Each of the puppets used in the show took a year to build. Each dino weighed 1.6 tons, about the weight of a car, and ran on six roller blade wheels. It takes a team of people to operate each one, including a driver and voodoo puppeteers who operate the head and tail.