Fast, furious, cleverly inventive, comedically dramatic. And that’s just the live score on the piano.
Dinomania follows the life of amateur Geologist Gideon Martell when he discovers a huge tooth and possibly the existence of dinosaurs. What follows next is the heartbreaking story of one man’s journey to be heard by the Scientific elite.
Taking place in the 19th century, the debate between creation vs evolution plays a larger role than it would in modern times. Yet, the theme of power, struggle and ownership remains.
It’s not all doom and gloom, however. The script cleverly weaves comedy in all the right places from dramatic harmonies to larger than life characters.
The play runs through at a roaring pace (there’s a lot of plot points to get through and many characters, all handled impressively well by a cast of only four). Lighting above the stage changes colour to denote a shift in time or place to help the story move swiftly. The props are simple and minimal but effective (see if you can spot what the fossils are made from!).
I can’t help emphasis the impact of the live piano score in helping to add drama, whether frantic or somber. It’s a fantastic decision by Kandinsky to include and would not be the same play without it.
After the play, I was shocked to find Dinomania is based on a true story which makes Dinomania all the more sad on reflection. You can read more about here.
Rating 4/5
