Barney's Big Surprise (also known as La Gran Sorpresa de Barney in Latin America) was
Barney the Dinosaur's first national tour. The show started in 1996 and played in 60 cities, with a program of 28 old and new Barney songs. Originally planned for theaters (and modeled after the earlier ''
Barney Live in New York City'' at
Radio City Music Hall
Radio City Music Hall is an entertainment venue and Theater (structure), theater at 1260 Sixth Avenue (Manhattan), Avenue of the Americas, within Rockefeller Center, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Nicknamed "The Showplac ...
in
New York City), it was revised to become more like a
rock concert for young children; most of the venues were small arenas with around 5,000 seats, with some larger arenas used as well. A video of the show, which had been taped at the
Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum, was released in 1998.
Cast
The cast list below is taken from the video release and does not show all cast members that have performed in this show.
* Barney (suit) – Carey Stinson/Josh Martin
* Barney (voice) –
Bob West
Robert Matthew West (born June 25, 1956) is an American voice actor and graphic designer. He is best known as the original voice of Barney in the PBS children's television series ''Barney & Friends''.
Career 1979–1988: Early voice work c ...
* Baby Bop (suit) – Lee Clark/Jennifer Romano
* Baby Bop (voice) –
Julie Johnson
* B.J. (suit) – Kyle Nelson/Pat O'Connoll
* B.J. (voice) – Patty Wirtz
Additional cast
* Professor Tinkerputt –
Barry Pearl
Barry Lee Pearl (born March 29, 1950 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania) is an American actor.
Pearl is best known for his role as "Doody", one of the three supporting T-Birds, in the 1978 film version of '' Grease''. He also had a cameo as Mr. Weaver ...
*
Mother Goose – Michelle McCarel
* Old King Cole – Dewayne Hambrick
* Kevin – Brent Love
* Cindy – Mallory Lineberger
* Rachel – Vanessa Lauren
* Tony – Trent Gentry
Songs
Act 1 songs
# Barney Is A Dinosaur
#
If You're Happy And You Know It
# Welcome To Our Treehouse
# The Baby Bop Hop
# Happy Birthday To Me
# The Airplane Song
# My Kite
# Car Sing-Along Medley (In The Car And Having Fun,
Itsy Bitsy Spider
"Itsy Bitsy Spider" (also known as "Incy Wincy Spider" in Australia and Great Britain, and several other similar-sounding names) is a popular nursery rhyme and fingerplay that describes the adventures of a spider as it ascends, descends, and rea ...
, and Mister Sun)
# Mr. Knickerbocker
# Tinkerputt's Song
# We Are Little Robots
# The Rainbow Song
Act 2 songs
# Hey Look At Me! I Can Fly!
# Ducks That I Once Knew
# Happy Birthday To Me (reprise)
# If All The Raindrops
#
Old McDonald Had a Farm
"Old MacDonald Had a Farm" (sometimes shortened to Old MacDonald) is a traditional children's song and nursery rhyme about a farmer and the various animals he keeps. Each verse of the song changes the name of the animal and its respective nois ...
# I'm Mother Goose
# Nursery-Rhyme Medley (Humpty Dumpty, Hey Diddle Diddle, Little Miss Muffet, Little Boy Blue, 1, 2, Buckle My Shoe, Sing A Song Of Sixpence)
#
Old King Cole
"Old King Cole" is a British nursery rhyme first attested in 1708. Though there is much speculation about the identity of King Cole, it is unlikely that he can be identified reliably as any historical figure. It has a Roud Folk Song Index numbe ...
#
Happy Birthday To You
# I Love You
Reception
''
Los Angeles Times'' critic Lynne Heffley noted that the "feel-good formula" for the stage show was similar to a ''Barney'' television episode: "hugging, singing, dancing, more hugging and a little advice", and she found the result to be "lively, expertly staged and a lavish visual treat", although she suggested earplugs given the loud volumes. In the ''
Chicago Tribune'', Eric Fidler commented that "Judging Barney through the eyes of an adult is pointless. For an adult unable to relax and suspend judgment, the show was a vision of some twisted hell. But kids were in heaven."
[Eric Fidler]
"Barney's Live Show Works By Keeping Kids-first Ethic"
'' Chicago Tribune'', March 17, 1997 (from '' Variety'').
References
{{Barney & Friends
Barney & Friends
Mattel Television films
1998 direct-to-video films
American direct-to-video films
1990s English-language films