There’s nothing specifically Christmassy about this fun, DIY-flavoured spoof run-through of the entire plot of Jurassic Park which is headlining the festive season at Dalston’s Arcola Theatre. But this likeable and deeply silly show nevertheless has the anarchic spirit of panto lingering below the surface. You’re never far from shouting ‘behind you’ at an imaginary dinosaur, or, more accurately, an actor with three cones on his head pretending to be an ill triceratops.
The less you know about Jurassic Park, the more likely you are to be confused as two actors – Jack Baldwin and Laurence Pears – tear through the entire story of the 1993 movie. But at least being lost won’t feel like a slog. The show’s energy and inventiveness is impressive enough to drag audiences through stretches when they’ve lost the plot, which the company recalls with remarkable fidelity while allowing themselves plenty of side gags and improv moments. Charlie Ives acts as an onstage foley artist, giving us live sound effects from dinosaur roars to buzzing electric fences, all using the likes of glass jars, cutlery and a computer keyboard. Leaning into frenetic physical comedy, Baldwin and Pears dash through all the main characters, from Richard Attenborough’s madcap theme-park entrepreneur to Sam Neill’s kid-phobic paleontologist. The doomed lawyer is a red tie tethered around one of their hands; the film’s little-boy character is just a red backpack they carry with them.
If you’re looking for throwaway fun packed with humour and ingenuity, you’ll find it here – only you should be prepared for a preparatory re-watch of Steven Spielberg’s pre-historic action-adventure film to get the most out of the show. Otherwise its torrent of knowing references and gags will land about as convincingly as the fantasy science behind the original movie.
