DINOSAURS will be roaming around the West Yorkshire Playhouse today and tomorrow when Australian theatre company Erth use ingenious puppetry to bring these prehistoric creatures to life in Dinosaur Zoo.

This interactive and imaginative show will introduce half-term family audiences to a range of creatures from cute baby dinos to teeth-gnashing giants, such as the carnivorous theropod known as the "Australovenator", Australia’s version of the Tyrannosaurus Rex.

Intrepid audience members will be invited on stage to assist Erth's zoo keepers in their daily tasks, but be warned, not all of these ravenous reptiles are as tame as they seem. Each performance will conclude with a post-show chance to meet the dinosaurs.

Dinosaur Zoo has enjoyed seasons at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre in London, in the West End and at the Edinburgh Festival and has played to families and schools all over the world, from Australia to Los Angeles, from New York City to Bahrain, with its mix of humour, adventurous daring and learning.

"It could be described as a Live Animal Presentation, much like you might see at a zoo or a wildlife park," says director Scott Wright. "But we have dinosaurs, great dinosaurs, from very small babies to some of the largest ever found. We teach the audience aspects of animal husbandry and we invite some members of the audience onto the stage to assist us with feeding and caring for our dinosaurs.

"The show is naturally geared towards kids as children worldwide love dinosaurs, but one of the surprising things is that adults get a real kick out of it too. It does have some great educational overtones but at the end of the day it's very funny and has a lovely endearing nature to it."

The Sydney company's aim is "to have fun and to be honest". "Dinosaurs are awesome but they can also be big and scary; every kid knows that.," says Scott.

"We like delivering the facts and since working with museums, the importance of honesty has allowed us to tackle some pretty sticky questions like 'Is it real?'. Once upon a time, we would try and explain our way out of such a question with awkward charm, but these days we are straight up: 'Yes, it's a real puppet'.

"It's the easiest answer and thanks to the magic of theatre and people's desire to suspend their disbelief, more often than not, just two minutes after you announce that all the dinosaurs are puppets, people forget and continue on the journey."

Scott attributes Dinosaur Zoo's popularity to its unique nature. "There's nothing like it in the world and because it's Australian it has a fun, edgy charm to it. Most people's experience of dinosaurs is based on inanimate objects in museums or as animated creatures in film or television, so by bringing our dinosaurs on to the stage we come one step closer, realising everybody's dream of having these awesome creatures alive and well in our modern world."

Dinosaur Zoo, Quarry Theatre, West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds, today and tomorrow, 11am and 2pm. Box office: 0113 213 7700 and wyp.org.uk. Suitable for age three plus.

Charles Hutchinson