A play featuring a wormhole, dinosaurs, and a pair of eighth graders on a field trip will be hitting St. Albert next week.
The play, A Dinosaur Tale will be travelling — perhaps even through a space-time portal — to the Arden Theatre on Feb. 9.
The show has been dubbed “a live action fantasy adventure for the whole family,” and initially ran in the fall of 2021 in Edmonton and Calgary, and then again over Christmas in Calgary in 2021.
The play is kicking off its Western Canadian tour over the course of February and March with shows stretching out across the Western provinces from Manitoba to B.C..
Sarah Glubish, who was born in St. Albert, plays the part of Lisa, an eighth grader on a field trip in the Badlands of Alberta.
“(Lisa) is very precocious, and she is a people pleaser, and she just loves to get everything right,” said Glubish.
Lisa has been partnered with Declan.
“The two of them are partnered up to work on a project together where they have to find fossils... And instead, they discover a remote control which, which opens a wormhole to the past and, and there they discover something better than they were targeting for,” said Glubish.
The dinosaurs — yes, there are dinosaurs — are “incredible” said Glubish.
“First of all, you don't realize how big they are until you see them in person. And they are so lifelike,” she said.
The dinosaurs, who are operated by puppeteers, can blink, move their mouths, and walk.
“We have an incredible sounds system that goes with the dinosaurs. They are so incredibly lifelike, and the response is incredible. Kids will be amazed,” said Glubish.
When asked if kids are scared of the dinosaurs, Glubish said writer Louis B. Hobson said the show has what he calls “the Disney effect.”
“It's a little bit frightening, but in that exciting way where you get to see everything is okay in the end."
“Some kids might be frightened. But mostly I think they'll be really excited and that's what we've seen in the previous shows,” Glubish said.
Glubish said she is excited to bring the show back to where she was born. She said she has no memories of St. Albert as a child but it’s really fun to come back as an adult to see the city.
As for her favourite memory of the show so far, Glubish said she loves live performances and the reactions from kids.
“We have kids who often dress up as dinosaurs when they come to the show. And they're very excited to see the dinosaurs and it's a pretty relaxed atmosphere. The kids like to try to get close to the stage and see the dinosaurs so it's very exciting,” she said.
Show times for a Dinosaur Tale are 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. on Feb. 9. Tickets are $30.00 and can be bought at the Arden Theatre box office or on the Arden Theatre website.
