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Poland kids delighted by dinosaur
Tyrannosaurus rex romps and rolls with kindergartners
By DENISE DICK
denise_dick@vindy.com
POLAND
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Ashlee Barth, in the striped shirt, Rachel Wolfe and Michael Voitus pet the Baby T. Rex at the dinosaur's Mahoning Valley debut at the Poland branch of the Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County. Baby T., as it's called, is one of 17 life-size dinosaurs from the arena show, "Walking with Dinosaurs,Ó which runs May 4-5 at the Covelli Centre. The creature met kindergarten students from Poland's three elementary schools Monday.
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Kindergarten students from Poland’s elementary schools await Baby T. Rex, one of 17 life-size dinosaurs that will storm the Covelli Centre on May 4-5 at the “Walking with Dinosaurs” show.
"Walking with Dinosaurs" | Tickets
Tickets for “Walking with Dinosaurs” at Covelli Centre on May 4-5 are available online at Ticketmaster.com, at retail locations including Giant Eagle and Macy’s or by charging by phone at 1 (800) 745-3000. Tickets cost $35 to $57.
Sources: Covelli Centre, Ticketmaster
Dinosaurs died off 65 million years ago but experienced a rebirth Monday at the Poland branch of the Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County.
“Walking with Dinosaurs, the Arena Spectacular” comes to the Covelli Centre May 4-5, bringing 17 life-size dinosaurs to walk, snarl and brawl on the arena floor.
But one of those creatures, a baby Tyrannosaurus rex, nicknamed “Baby T,” made an early stop at the library to visit kindergarten students from Poland’s three elementary schools.
The children chanted, “Baby T, Baby T,” to coax the 7-foot-tall, 14-foot-long beast from behind a curtain.
“You can touch him,” Matthew Rimmer, spokesman for the North America Tour, told the kids. “But don’t pull his tail. He doesn’t like it when you pull his tail, and you don’t want to make a Tyrannosaurus rex angry — not even a baby one.”
The creature roared, waved its tail and met nose-to-nose with the crowd of children, eliciting squeals, giggles and a little apprehension.
“When he first came up and got real close, I thought it was a little scary,” said Geno Millione, 7. “But it was fun.”
“He almost hit me in the face with his tail,” giggled Dominic Klase, 6.
“It was cool,” added Morgan Kluchar, 6.
All three of the North Elementary School students said they hope to attend the show.
Though Baby T. was powered by a person in a realistic-looking dinosaur costume, most are remote-controlled robots. Baby T. is also the smallest of the prehistoric creatures.
The largest is the 36-foot-tall brachiosaurus, and Baby’s mom stretches about 18 feet high.
The arena show, based on the BBC Television series of the same name, started in 2007.
“It took 25 semi-trucks to bring the dinosaurs here to Ohio,” Rimmer said. “Most rock-and-roll shows take 12 to 15 trucks.”
About 65 people travel from city to city with the show and that’s augmented with local people who pitch in at show time. It takes about 11‚Ñ2 days to set up the show, he said.
“Don’t miss it,” Rimmer said. “It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”