I was fully planning on going to the opening last week and go outside my home state for the first time since last March, but sadly real life got in the way as always. Thankfully my friends at WDWMAGIC offered to help describe the new ride to y’all so I won’t have to be spoiled by video, but by proofreading all this text. Yay! Anyway let’s cut the introduction and start with Shannoninthemagic’s eyewitness report of what it looks like on the outside:
“The show is housed in a geodesic dome that matches the other main attraction in this park. To minimize disruption to the rest of the tracks that are buried on the property this building rests off a branching path near the parking lot (the main path turns a corner to head to the tracks, a new path extends off the corner) the path leads a short distance to the second geodesic building with a statute garden and potted ferns and other plant life to make it feel like prehistoric times ( Potted so they can be safe in the winter season) lining the path. The statue garden starts with movie depictions of dinosaurs through the years, then moves on to the more realistic depictions of dinos such as the T-Rex and Stegosaurus, and ends with less commonly known dinos like the ones that once roamed the park Dilophosaurus. Each statue has a plaque near it with interesting facts. The aim is to keep the nature vibe as much as possible as this is a state park with lots of hiking trails!”
Of course entering the geodesic dome will take guests inside where AceAstro describes that:
"Guests enter a small tent that serves as the waiting area for the main show. In here, guests can find small displays of fossils of various dinosaurs with information plaques giving all sorts of fun details about the dinosaurs that can be seen. Bones from dinosaurs such as the Baryonyx walker, Suchomimus, Kentrosaurus, and more can be seen throughout this area leading towards the far back of the room. Here, screens show the fossil dinosaurs “come to life” right in front of guests eyes. On the screen and speakers above, a paleontologist, Dr. Bones (played by Gary Sinise) comes into frame. Dr. Bones explains who he is (the head paleontologist of the area) and that in just a few brief moments the guests will be ushered into The Time Theatre. And with that, guests enter into the Theatre for the show."
Most of the animatronics are rudimentary which isn’t surprising considering that it’s not a Disney or Universal park, but there are some pretty good ones in certain scenes like one I won’t spoil right now in the Jurassic scene. To move on to how the shows play out, I’ll let PerGron and AceAstro, who both have said that they had a great time watching it, describe it:
"(At the Introduction Stage) The theatre stage is fairly simple at this point with only a full Styracosaurus fossil set up in stage. After all the guests have entered the theatre and gotten to their seats, Dr. Bones can be heard overhead again. “Thank to all who have made it to The Time Theatre! As a special treat, we will soon be travelling through time going period by period to get an up close and personal view with these dinosaurs.” At that point, through the use of Pepper’s Ghost, the Styracosaurus suddenly becomes a full living dinosaur that looks around and breathes. “I think we have had enough fun here! Let’s head to the Triassic Period.” And with that, the lights fade as the theatre heads to the first scene."
Bones: “Amazing, I’m so glad you made it safely to the Triassic Era! Luckily, we don’t have to worry about any mass extinctions for a few more million years. No, here we have some of the earliest dinosaurs that ever roamed the planet. Aren’t they amazing?”
Thunder strikes and rain begins to fall on the stage as the sounds of insects choruses. A few of the dinosaurs jerk their heads, frightened by the thunder. The low grunting of a few species can be heard.
Bones: “Luckily, this is just a little storm, nothing to worry about. How about we take this opportunity to learn about some of our amazing Triassic dinosaurs we see here? Believe it or not, the dinosaurs weren’t the dominant force on Earth until the late Triassic and into the Jurassic! Instead, life was mostly dominated by species that we still have on Earth here today: crocodilians.
The sounds of the rainforest continue as the lights dim, all except for above the Phytosaur. This animatronic is a very basic crocodilian animatronic with a basic mouth opening and closing movement like can be seen at the Rainforest Cafe, the Jungle Cruise, Living with the Land, and more. Bones voiceover begins.
Bones: Here we have the phytosaur, a representative of the archosauriformes, a group that would later branch out and evolve into all kinds of groups, most notably, the crocodiles and the birds. These early crocodilians were found all over the world from North America to Madagascar and beyond. Today’s fossil record indicates that there are twenty species of phytosaur, spread across the Triassic and Jurassic periods. This family was one of the most successful predators until they were all wiped out during the Triassic-Jurassic extinction event about 200 million years ago. While we may not see the Phytosaur today, his genetics live on in every bird and crocodilian that we do see.
The light dims on the phytosaur and then illuminates on the Rhynchosaur, a stout reptile standing on four squat legs. This animatronic’s range of motion is mainly in its jaw and neck where it can sway its head side-to-side all the while chewing on a mouthful of grass.
Bones: This squat fellow here is a rhynchosaur, a representative of over twenty unique species belonging to the same general group as our phytosaur before. That’s right, these guys here are members of the archosauriformes group too! Despite these guys being polar opposites, with the rhynchosaur being a land-dwelling herbivore, they are actually descended from a similar common ancestor. Also unlike our friend the phytosaur, this species actually doesn’t seem to have any modern day relatives. While reptilian herbivores like rhynchosaur were once the dominating herbivorous forces that shaped the environment around them, these guys died out in the same extinction event as the phytosaur, yet today, the phytosaur’s descendents live on, and the rhynchosaur’s all lie within the Earth’s crust.
Thunder strikes as the theater shakes, utilizing the baseplate that the seating sits on for basic movement. As the seat shakes, the lights do as well as the spotlight illuminates a crocodilian-looking species, but it stands higher than a crocodile and appears mostly terrestrial. This species is the Aetosaur.
Bones: The Aetosaur! I haven’t seen one of these guys in my travels before, you should count yourselves lucky. Imagine, if you will, an animal with the body of a crocodile, the bony plates of an armadillo, and the appetite of a cow and you have an aetosaur! These guys are super close relatives to crocodilians more-so than they were to birds and dinosaurs, but they still served as one of the dominant groups of herbivores on the planet. This group was also believed to be a burrowing species that would also dig up roots and other ground plants to eat. While today we may not have any herbivorous crocodiles left today, it’s certainly one of the biggest names of the Triassic.
The thunder crackles again as lightning spreads across the ceiling before the light illuminates a crocodilian-like species. This animatronic is a bit more advanced than the other, able to raise its body and arms upright to stand on its hind legs. Its mouth opens and lets out a roar as the light illuminates it.
Bones: Aha! The Rauisuchia, another member of our archosauriformes, but this guy is unlike any other crocodilian that I can think of. These guys have the ability to stand on their rear legs in order to defend themselves as well as their meals. However, scientists also believe that these guys were incredibly quick on their four legs as well, hunting down large prey and defending it with great ferocity. In a world dominated by giants, this is definitely one species I wouldn’t want to mess with!
Thunder cracks again with the light now moving on to a small feathered bird-like dinosaur that sits perched on a tree stump. This animatronic is simple, able to move its head and open its mouth but not do much else.
Bones: The Kongonaphon, our first true dinosaur of this trip, he’s a little guy, one not closely related to any other dinosaurs, but actually branched off from the same group pterosaurs branched from, albeit, the two are not closely related. While scientists initially believed these guys were insectivores, in recent years, it has been discovered that they were actually herbivores, playing an important role in seed dispersal.
The thunder cracks once more, this time surging the lights in the room, causing the seats to shake. The seats tingle and vibrate as if electricity were coursing through them. The lights dim and appear on a bush, but nothing is there.
Bones: Woah! This storm is getting a bit dangerous, we’d better wrap up here, but I don’t see our last dinosau-
Just as he finishes, an animatronic Coelophysis leaps out from within the bush. This is the most advanced animatronic in the sequence and its ability to leap (though on a robotic arm hidden by the darkness and the bush prop) startles guests.
Bones: There she is! This, ladies and gentlemen, is the coelophysis, perhaps the most well-known of the triassic dinosaurs. Thanks to films and tv shows, the coelophysis is often wrapped up with other dinosaurs as if it were found within the Jurassic or Cretaceous when in reality, this predatory species was among the apex predators of the late Triassic. Coelophysis was one of the earliest known pack animals, so to see one alone is strange.
As he says that, two more coelophysis leap out.
Bones: It’s an ambush! These other animals better get going, and so do we. Another lightning strike may mess with our time trajectory and send us somewhere far more dangerous than a little Triassic thunderstorm.
The time machine begins whirring as we begin to rotate, but lightning hits again, sending the lights into flickering, then darkness. The lights come back slowly as Bones checks if everyone is alright, but it's too late, we’re now somewhere else entirely in time: the Jurassic.
Now on the next stage is a rainforest-like environment, where a storm is just ending as the dinosaurs wait under the shade of the trees for the mighty rain thunderstorm to end. The sounds of the mighty storm can be heard all over the theater as guests can barely see the dinosaurs in silhouette. The voiceover of Dr. Bones once again begins as the storm ends and the dinosaurs seem to calm down.
Dr. Bones explains that thanks to the wet and warm climate of this era, many new species of dinosaurs came to rise, many quite large such as the Brachiosaurus (who pops up from a ravine). A Sauropod dinosaur with a long neck that allowed it to grow up to 85 feet tall while having a comparatively tiny tail. Unlike most dinosaurs, this species was able to keep its temperature stable at between 95 and 120 degrees Fahrenheit. Mr. Bones decides to call it Tall Tim, but he thinks that it’d fit all Brachiosauruses since they stand heads and tails above any other dinosaur.
Bones: Oh my, not again. Alright, I’m going to get our best time engineers on this immediately, one more time skip could be… devastating. In the meantime, judging by our friends at the waterhole, we’ve reached the cretaceous period. Sure, while Jurassic Park may have made the Jurassic era the most well-known, almost all of the dinosaurs you know and love are found right here in the cretaceous. Now, I need all of you to do me a favor though, the cretaceous period was famous for volcanic activity, and that one back there could blow at any time. If she starts rumbling, I need you to shout “volcano” as loud as you can.
The lights dim and a spotlight highlights a dinosaur resembling a large turkey with the crest of a cassowary. The animatronic bobs its head and moves its arms rather simply as it is illuminated.
Bones: A Chirostenotes, this is one of the lesser-known cretaceous dinosaurs, but an important one nonetheless. This species is from a branch of dinosaurs called Oviraptosauria, the closest evolutionary link to modern day birds that we have. You can see the early wings developing on this species, though their arms do end in long straight claws that were used for defending themselves and their offspring from predators.
The light switches over to another animatronic, this one is a giant pteranodon that takes up much of the stage. Its eyes move and its beak opens, but other than that, the figure is mostly stationary.
Bones: Quetzalcoatalus was the tallest flying species to ever live and would tower over even the modern day giraffe. The quetzalcoatlus is a predator here in the Cretaceous, that just like our encounter with the pterodactyl back in the Jurassic Era, is one of the most efficient aerial predators of all time. Luckily, it looks like this guy is here to just grab a drink at the water hole and isn’t gonna divebomb us, knock on wood.
The volcano begins releasing smoke to which people shout “volcano,” but Bones assures them a little smoke is natural. Besides, the engineers are still working remotely on the machine and jumping now could be dangerous. The lights then dim and focus on an iguanodon. This animatronic is able to stand up and down and move its head, similar to the one on the Discovery River Cruise.
Bones: The Iguanodon was actually the second dinosaur ever discovered and is one of the more popular dinosaurs thanks to the Disney movie “Dinosaur.” These guys moved in large herds and were said to migrate, just like modern day grazers, which the iguanodon would be the prehistoric equivalent of.
The iguanodon lets out a bellowing roar as the volcano begins releasing more smoke. The dinosaurs begin to get nervous as the shouts of “volcano” echo the chamber again. Bones assures everyone it’s still safe and that the time machine is almost done. The light dims and showcases an Ankylosaurus. This animatronic is able to lift its club-like tail and smash it on the ground, causing the entire seating area to shake each time it does so
Bones: The ankylosaurus is one of the toughest dinosaurs of the cretaceous with hard bony plating along its body, spikes jutting out from that plating, and a mean bony club that it can swing like a mallet. These herbivores are reminiscent of the modern day rhinoceros as both species are grazers who predators would rather not mess with. You can feel that club hit the ground, imagine what it would do to a small therapod’s jaw.
The light then switches over to a trio of velociraptors who stand atop rocks overlooking the other dinosaurs. They are small and feathered as they should be. They are able to lurch forward, spread their feathered arms, and open their mouths, though other movements are not available.
Bones: Movies like Jurassic Park have painted a very unrealistic picture of the velociraptor. While a 6-foot tall scaly hyper-intelligent predator makes for a great monster in a horror movie, the actual velociraptor was a whole lot smaller than those featured in pop culture. In fact, these little dinosaurs were more than likely scavengers, filling a niche similar to hyenas in the modern day, cleaning up carrion while also working in packs to take food from larger dinosaurs and even bring down their own prey. These guys are among the closest relatives of birds today, but while the ostrich and relatives may be seen as “raptor-like,” the velociraptor is probably closer to species like eagles, hawks, and owls, hence their collective name of “raptors” meaning “bird of prey.”
The raptors hiss as the volcano rumbles, shaking the time machine as smoke bellows from it. Bones worriedly says that everything will be okay as the other dinosaurs also begin to panic. The lights flicker and settle on a nervous triceratops doing battle with a tyrannosaurus rex. The Triceratops swings its tail and is able to move back and forth, lowing its horned head towards the therapod’s exposed underside. The t-rex, meanwhile, is also able to step, shaking the ground and the seating area as it does.
Bones: Here we see two of the biggest Cretaceous icons doing battle: here is a triceratops facing off against the fearsome tyrannosaurus rex. The triceratops has these large horns that it can use for defense and is often seen protecting its offspring by getting between it and a predator. Unfortunately, as tough as they are, so isn’t t-rex, the most well-known dinosaur of all time and is named as Lizard King or Tyrant Lizard King. The fearsome t-rex is one of the greatest predators of all time, though some scientists also believe it may have been more of a scavenger than a predator, but it doesn’t seem like we’re going to have the time to test that theory because that volcano is about to blow any second. We’ve gotta get out of here, let’s hope that the engineers are done!
The violent shaking turns to sparks as we pass into another jungle, this time, filled with the sounds of birds, insects, amphibians, and more. We see a few dinosaurs on stage as the theater slows to a halt.
Bones: Well we escaped from the volcano, but it appears we’re not out of the woods yet, these guys are late cretaceous dinosaurs. Let’s just hope we didn’t jump too far. I’ll turn on the asteroid scanner.
Noises beep electronically but Bones returns, dejected.
Bones: We’d all better keep our fingers crossed. The power we diverted to make that jump fried most of our technology. It’ll be a bit before our engineers can get it back online. In the meantime, let’s take a look at some of the dinosaurs we see here.
The lights dim and focus on a pair of Pachycephalosaurus in the back. These dinosaurs legs are able to move and the two are on tracks, running towards each other and “hitting” each other with a crack sound. The sound echoes and vibrates in the room.
Bones: Pachycephalosaurus were dinosaurs with fierce mating behaviors. Their heads featured hard armored plates so that, like goats or deer, they could crash head-first into one another without damaging their brains. What’s crazier is that these guys lived on mountains, so a well-placed hit and wrong-placed footing would undo your rival, well, forever. I wonder what these two are doing in the jungle valley though.
Small meteors fly through the sky projected as Bones can be heard gulping.
Bones: Just a tiny meteor shower, nothing to worry about. Everyone make a wish!
The meteors go by as the light highlights a dinosaur standing in the water. It is able to raise its body and move its head like the iguanodon from the previous scene, but unlike the iguanodon, this species features a prominent head crest.
Bones: The parasaurolophus is a super famous dinosaur, and one that is among the most aquatic. These guys are able to hold their breath for minutes at a time and were believed to have fed almost exclusively off of aquatic plants. However, they would also join massive migratory herds during the dry season to cross the supercontinent to find water.
Meteors continue overhead as the lights flicker over to another dinosaur in the water, this one has a large sail on its back that is able to move and its jaws are able to open and shut as well, with its arms having limited range of motion.
Bones: The Spinosaurus was among the most complete fossils every discovered, but that skeleton was destroyed in a bombing campaign during World War II. Today, scientists debate back and forth whether spinosaurus was a hunter or a fisher, with most scientists choosing the latter. Being able to swim, hold their breath, and use their dorsal ridge to cut through water like a knife as well as its elongated snout lead scientists to believe the spinosaurus wasn’t an apex predator, but a large predatory fish-eater, though certainly they’d snack on a small animal that passed by given the opportunity.
The lights in the machine begin flickering as the lights on stage highlight the Styracosaurus. This animatronic can turn its head and move its tail as well as stamp its front right foot on the ground. It lets out a bellowing roar as the meteors begin to pick up, streaming across the sky. A carnotaurus stands behind it, able to move its head, but not much else.
Bones: This guy is a styracosaurus, we saw his skeleton earlier in our travels. These guys were members of the same family as triceratops, able to use their horns and hard plated head as defense from large predators like the carnotaurus behind him. The carnotaurus’s comically small arms means that odds are, this dinosaur killed almost exclusively with its mouth rather than using its arms like a spinosaurus may. The carnotaurus is also believed to have hunted in small groups as they would be no match for larger predators like the tyrannosaurus rex.
Suddenly, the room begins glowing orange as a massive asteroid juts out from the ceiling.
Bones: Oh no! Everyone, brace yourselves, this is the big one! Hold on and keep your loved ones close and brace for impact!
The lights go out as crashing is heard. The room shakes violently, tossing and turning guests in their seats, up and down as the asteroid collides with the Earth. The guests sit in darkness for a few seconds before the machine whirrs back to life, booting up and emitting light back into the room. As we look on, a screen has covered the stage, but we can see the jungle, burning and decrepit. The dinosaurs are dead.
Bones: We must’ve jumped just in time because we’d have been just as dead as the dinosaurs if not. Well, those ones at least. In reality, the asteroid from the K-T extinction blocked out the sun, killing plants and cooling the Earth, regulating herbivores to dying of starvation. Eventually, with the herbivores going extinct, the carnivores would follow with no prey of their own. Nobody truly knows how long it took for the dinosaurs to go extinct, many species would have died the day of the impact while others may have lasted years to come, but one thing’s for sure, because of that asteroid, the dinosaurs are no more. However, look over there. Life.
A small rodent-like mammal scurries across the screen, sniffing plants and dirt looking for food. It scurries past the camera and guests feel it move under their seats (ala Tough to Be a Bug).
Bones: While 75% of all life on Earth went extinct that 65 million years ago, this led to the rise of the mammals, which led to our own evolution. Life has a beautiful way of thriving and surviving, and while the dinosaurs had their day, the mammals too got theirs. Well, I think the machine has just enough juice, what do you say?
The machine begins whirring again as lights flicker, bringing us into our final room.
After the end of the extinction event scene, guests rotate back into the original intro theatre, now with a curtain covering the fossil this time. It’s clear some damage from the extinction scene made it here (lighting and damage to the curtain plus some smoke on the stage).
Dr. Bones comes back out to share: “Well that was certainly an interesting time! But we made it out! Seeing all those dinosaurs up close was dangerous, but very informative. Thank you for joining us in The Time Theatre, we hope to see you again soon!”
And with that, the doors open again as guests leave towards a gift shop. As they leave, the curtain raises to show the Styracosaurus fossil to prepare for the next show."
Dr. Bones comes back out to share: “Well that was certainly an interesting time! But we made it out! Seeing all those dinosaurs up close was dangerous, but very informative. Thank you for joining us in The Time Theatre, we hope to see you again soon!”
And with that, the doors open again as guests leave towards a gift shop. As they leave, the curtain raises to show the Styracosaurus fossil to prepare for the next show."
AND THAT'S THE END
CREDITS
Introduction, Conclusion, Presentation - Sharon&Susan
Exterior - Shannoninthemagic
Preshow - AceAstro
Main Show - PerGron, AceAstro, and Sharon&Susan
Ideas - DashHaber
Assistance - b-wolf95
Introduction, Conclusion, Presentation - Sharon&Susan
Exterior - Shannoninthemagic
Preshow - AceAstro
Main Show - PerGron, AceAstro, and Sharon&Susan
Ideas - DashHaber
Assistance - b-wolf95
