- [Guide] On your left, on your left.
- [Narrator] These lifelike dinosaur puppets
will star in the new "Jurassic World Live Tour,"
which debuts in arenas around the US this fall.
The show is produced by Feld Entertainment,
the same company behind "Disney on Ice"
and "Marvel Universe Live."
- I would like to officially introduce all of you to Jeanie.
- [Ross] You're gonna be face-to-face with actual dinosaurs.
We've done a lot of development, a lot of research
to making these dinosaurs really lifelike.
The texture of their skin, their eyes, the way they move,
the speed at which they move, everything is super realistic.
- [Narrator] The show's scenic team
designed the dinosaur puppets
using the CGI models of the creatures
seen in the "Jurassic" film franchise.
- There's a foam underlayer that houses all the electronics
and gives it the shape that's needed,
and then we cover the entirety of it
in its scaling pattern, its skin.
It's really impressive to see even the little nuances,
the eye blinks, the little cock to the head to the side.
The idea is that you can see what the dinosaur is feeling
by what that "dinoteer" is doing internally.
- [Narrator] The puppets are controlled by dinoteers
who not only have to act like dinosaurs,
they also have to be in incredible physical condition
because the costumes weigh over 100 pounds.
- Make no mistake, these are absolutely athletes,
and they are elite athletes at that.
They have diverse backgrounds,
whether that be from exceptional training
in martial arts, dance, gymnastics.
- They need to be super fit to wear that weight
and to really move and feel it very light on their feet,
even though they have 120 additional pounds on their body.
- [Narrator] The team gave our producer
a 60-pound weighted vest to get a sense
of what the costume feels like for the dinoteers.
- Careful with those threads, that's J. Crew Factory.
- [Jay] We're gonna ask you to be
in a very unnatural position.
This is not a normal position for a human being to be in
if they're manipulating and being a dinoteer.
- So now you're gonna step forward.
- A lot of it's in sort of a semi-squat position,
and their gait is much larger, much wider.
So these cause excessive stress on joints and backs
and things of that nature as well.
- OK.
I should have...
should have done some lunges.
- [Narrator] Along with familiar faces
like Blue the Velociraptor, the show will introduce
a new character to the "Jurassic" universe:
a Troodon named Jeanie.
- [Dan] So we've got a Troodon.
Troodons were believed to be
the most intelligent dinosaur that lived.
So our lead character is a dinosaur called Jeanie,
short for genius, and she really forms the backbone
of our story, and it's her intelligence which really
inspired us in what to explore with our new story.
- Easy.
- This is truly a marriage of the fundamentals
of hand puppetry with the fundamentals
of full-body character work.
So these bike brakes here are responsible
for the head looking side-to-side.
It is a multistep process to train a human
to walk like a dinosaur. That is for sure.
A lot of it starts with out-of-costume work first.
- [Narrator] Before the dinoteers suit up,
they practice fundamental movements with hand puppets.
- There you go!
We're looking for people not only
with those strengths and stamina
but also people who can really manage sensory overload,
working inside confined costumes in the dark
with limited hearing, limited vision,
while being taxed physically.
- [Narrator] So these dinosaurs look amazing close-up.
But how will they look for people
sitting in the cheap seats?
- It's so important that everyone
who comes to the "Jurassic World Live Tour,"
no matter where they're sitting,
that they have a great experience.
We make sure that all the dinosaurs, all the show elements
have a really high level of detail
that actually makes it read from far away
no matter where they are positioned in the arena.
- [Narrator] The show promises one element
that people watching from the rafters
will definitely be able to see.
A full-size animatronic T-rex, which, at the time
of this report, was still being built and tested.
- [Interviewer] Can you give me an idea of what it costs
to create a lifelike animatronic Tyrannosaurus rex?
- No. - North of a million?
- Yes.
- North of 10 million?
- Not gonna answer anymore.
- Got it, OK.
- [Narrator] The producer wouldn't give specifics
about the budget, but she did say
it's one of the most expensive shows
the company has ever produced
and even referenced a famous quote from "Jurassic Park."
- We have spared no expense on this production.
- Spared no expense.
Spared no expense.
- Dinosaurs are pretty expensive.
- Careful, careful.
- Selfie?
- Oh, OK, now he's taking a selfie.
I don't know how she'll react to that, but we'll see.