theater

Ask a paleontologist why he likes dinosaurs, and he'll cite some crap about armor plating or herbivorous diets. Kids love dinos for a much simpler reason: They're totally awesome. The Arden Theatre hopes to tap into this inborn interest with The Dinosaur Musical, which gets its world premiere on Nov. 30.

Penned by brothers Willie and Robert Reale (pictured), the plot follows dinosaurs struggling to survive after a huge meteorite strikes the earth. With its humor-heavy script and samba-inflected score, Dinosaur is primed to top the success of the theater's last kids' hit, A Year With Frog and Toad.

Josh Lamon, who debuted in 2004's Sideways Stories From Wayside School and just won a Barrymore for Frog and Toad, thinks audiences will enjoy the Arden's latest offering. "It's an avalanche of fun," he says. "Kids respond so greatly to dinosaurs because their imaginations are huge. I think this show will give them a lot to have fun with."

While dinophiles will be pleased that many of their favorite creatures show up in the play, velociraptor-rights activists are incensed that the Cretaceous period's most efficient killers show up nowhere in Dinosaur. They're not alone in their devastation—Lamon's bummed. "I was disappointed too," he laments. See? That VHS copy of Jurassic Park you got at your bar mitzvah was worth keeping after all.

The Dinosaur Musical, Wed., Nov. 30, $14-$30, through Jan. 22, Arden Theatre, 40 N. Second St., 215-922-1122.