The Colour of Dinosaurs review – fascinating family show

Polka theatre, London
Palaeontologist Jakob Vinther joins a lively group of musicians for this gig-theatre production based on his groundbreaking research

Adaptations are a safe bet in children’s theatre: turn a much-loved picture book into a stage show and you’re guaranteed a head start in ticket sales. Hats off to Polka theatre (and Bristol Old Vic where this production originated) for seeking inspiration instead from a 2008 scientific paper by Yale University’s department of geology and geophysics. One of its co-authors, Danish palaeontologist Jakob Vinther, even appears alongside a five-strong band in this lively hour of gig-theatre for children aged four to 12.

Vinther’s research team found melanin in fossilised dinosaur feathers which resulted in a landmark reconstruction of the colour patterns in feathered dinosaurs. The show revisits that discovery, which is explained in a fun and accessible style for kids and, ahem, easily-baffled-by-science parents. That’s how 10-year-old Hilda and I find ourselves throwing around big cuddly “meatballs” and squishy “sausages”, representing the shape of reddish and black melanosomes respectively.