'Jurassic World Live Tour' to fill PPG Paints Arena with dinosaurs

It’s safe to say there’s never been anything quite like this at PPG Paints Arena — or in all of Pittsburgh.

Not even the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, with its impressive exhibition featuring massive real dinosaur fossils, can match the thrills that fans of the “Jurassic Park” and “Jurassic World” movies are expected to experience watching the gigantic animatronic and performer-operated dinosaurs come to life in the new “Jurassic World Live Tour” in town Oct. 24-27.

The production features more than 24 film-accurate, life-sized dinosaurs — including fan-favorite Velociraptor Blue and a Tyrannosaurus rex more than 40 feet in length — that are custom-built with the latest technology, scientific precision and Hollywood studio quality, according to Feld Entertainment officials, producers of the show.

“Working with a world-class production team and Universal filmmakers, we have extended the ‘Jurassic World’ canon with a new story that can only be told through this live, arena spectacular as we bring full-scale dinosaurs to generations of fans around the globe,” said Juliette Feld Grossman, chief operating officer of Feld Entertainment.

Trip takes ‘a terrifying turn’

The show’s story line revolves around an imaginary trip the audience takes to the fictional Central American island of Isla Nublar, located off the Pacific coast of Costa Rica, a trip that “takes a terrifying turn after the Indominus rex escapes and causes chaos in the park.”

The adventure continues as the audience joins forces with a team of scientists that is working to save Jeanie, a new dinosaur, from a terrible fate.

Along the way, audience members will recognize music from the “Jurassic World” score and some of the movie’s iconic dinosaurs, including Blue the raptor, triceratops, pteranodons and the Tyrannosaurus rex.

Douglas Puskas of Cleveland, Ohio, is the lead animatronics technician for “Jurassic World Live Tour” and part of a team of six technicians and seven dinoteers (puppeteers that work with the giant dinosaurs) that bring the creatures to life.

Puskas said an additional cast of 26 that includes professional stunt performers and lead actors is an integral part of the production.

Some very scary moments

“If you are a fan of the films, you will be a fan of this show,” he said in a phone interview. “It’s the same style as the two ‘Jurassic World’ movies, and it translates to kids and adults. There are some very scary moments when the T-Rex comes out, but the show is appealing to everyone.”

Pittsburgh is one of 65 cities announced on the first leg of the tour that runs through April — with additional cities expected to be added.

Puskas was among the “Jurassic World Live Tour” team that spent months at Feld’s Palmetto, Fla., headquarters when the dinosaurs were being built and tested prior to the tour and the show was in rehearsals.

A graduate of the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, he last worked as a props assistant for Tina Fey’s “Mean Girls” musical on Broadway. He said he’s thrilled to be affiliated with Feld Entertainment, adding that “it’s part of the entertainment I grew up with at Disney on Ice,” another Feld production.

He expects that the “Jurassic World Live Tour” is just the start of a new entertainment tradition.

“I definitely feel there’s a lot more life to this production, especially since it was recently announced that a third ‘Jurassic World’ movie is due out next year” and the Universal theme parks have new related attractions underway, he said.