This interactive performance takes audiences on a journey into the past and allows them to get up close and personal with some of the world’s cutest and most dangerous dinosaurs – including several species once found in Australia.

As an inflatable prehistoric world sprung to life on stage at the Norwood Concert Hall, host Scott Wright (the show’s writer/director) emerged, looking like a typical zookeeper in khakis and boots.

After an hilarious opening monologue, which included a dinosaur joke told by a young audience member, it was time to meet the first of the many prehistoric “guests” – the baby dinosaurs. From there, the guests got noticeably larger and as each was led onto the stage, Wright shared informative facts about their names, how they ate, what they hunted and which area of the world they lived in.

The show features a great deal of audience participation and this gives kids and adults alike the chance to pat, feed and even hug the dinosaurs. Those in the front rows – an area Wright cutely referred to as “the buffet zone” – are in for a real treat.

Each dinosaur is brought to life in vivid detail through the magic of puppetry and the four puppeteers do an excellent job (It can’t be easy to control a puppet that takes up most of the stage).

While the show is predominately aimed at children, there are plenty of jokes and references to keep adults entertained, too, and those who don’t get the opportunity to go on stage can still pat the baby dinosaurs and have photos taken with them after the performance.

Erth’s Dinosaur Zoo combines clever puppetry with scientific facts in a performance which is not only educational, but also incredibly fun; one hour just isn’t enough time to get to know these fascinating creatures.

Erth’s Dinosaur Zoo plays at Norwood Concert Hall until March 6. Australian company Erth will also be presenting Prehistoric Aquarium at the same venue from March 10-12.