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Blending movement and storytelling, Sadler’s Wells East showcases Dickson Mbi Company’s production TELLUS from 21st–24th Oct, exploring humanity’s broken relationship with the natural world.

This week, we spoke to Dickson about the inspiration behind the show, his creative process and what he hopes audiences will take away.

For anyone who hasn’t come across your work before, could you tell us a bit about yourself and how you got into dance and choreography?

I’m a choreographer, composer and performer, born in Cameroon, grew up in East London. My journey into dance started with hip hop and street dance, particularly popping. Dance became a big part of my life, and over time I became interested in exploring other movement languages, particularly contemporary dance. I wanted to understand how I could bring these different worlds together and find my own artistic voice.

I've been fortunate to work with some incredible artists and companies around the world, but I've always been interested in creating work that comes from personal a place and reflect the human conditions. In 2018, I founded Dickson Mbi Company as a space to develop my own work, bringing together dance, music and artist development. My production Enowate went on to win an Olivier Award in 2023, which was an extraordinary moment in my journey. But I still feel like I'm learning and discovering new things about myself as an artist. That's what keeps me going.

Where did the idea for TELLUS come from?

It really started in 2023, when I was trying to put my son to sleep. At the time, there was so much noise happening in the world, and everything felt quite overwhelming. All I wanted to do in that moment was shut everything out and tell my son a bedtime story. I found myself going back to some of the folk stories my parents used to tell me when I was growing up in Cameroon. Stories I probably didn't fully understand as a child, but that somehow stayed with me.

As I began developing the idea, I became interested in a young person entering a world where the land is suffering and there is no water. That naturally opened up questions about drought, displacement, climate change and our relationship with the Earth. But underneath all of that, TELLUS is still a story that began between a father and his son. I think there's something special about taking the stories and lessons that were passed down to me and finding my own way of passing something on to the next generation.

What can audiences expect from the production?

I think they can expect to enter a very different world for an hour. TELLUS brings together an incredible ensemble of dancers, live musicians, original music, projection and lighting to create a world that is constantly changing. At the centre of the story is a young person who finds themselves in a land suffering from drought and is guided on a journey by an older, mysterious figure. Along the way, we explore ideas around memory, community, survival and our relationship with nature.

The movement brings together different dance languages, from popping and hip hop to contemporary dance, and each performer brings their own personality and experiences into the work. There are moments of beauty, tension, humour and hopefully a little magic too. I don't necessarily want to tell audiences what to think or feel. I'd rather invite them into this world and allow them to experience it in their own way. A child might see an adventure, while an adult might connect with something completely different.

How has your Cameroonian heritage has influenced your work?

My heritage has always been an important part of who I am, but I think my understanding of it has changed as I've grown older. When I returned to my parents' village in Cameroon, things I had heard about or experienced growing up suddenly began to make more sense. Particularly the relationship between the natural and spiritual worlds, our ancestors and the land. That experience became central to Enowate, and it continues into TELLUS.

With TELLUS, I was particularly drawn to Mami Wata, the goddess of water, and the idea of her power – something that can give life but can also bring destruction. But I'm not trying to recreate Cameroonian folk stories onstage or say, "This is what Cameroon is." It's much more personal than that. I'm drawing from the stories, memories and traditions that have stayed with me and bringing them together with everything else that has shaped me.

You've composed the original score as well – how do the music and movement work together, and what inspired the sounds and instruments used?

Music and movement have always been connected for me. Coming from popping, my relationship with music started with listening very closely to rhythm, texture and the smallest details in a sound. Sometimes a tiny sound can inspire an entire movement. As I've developed as a choreographer, I've become more interested in composing my own music because it allows me to build the movement and sound together rather than treating them as two separate things. Which in itself is very African, as in several African cultures there is only one word for dance and music. It’s not separate.

With TELLUS, the music is another storyteller. Sometimes it leads the movement, sometimes the dancers lead the music, and sometimes they exist in tension with each other. I wanted to create a sound world that brings together different influences, from orchestral composition to Afrocentric rhythms, electronic textures and sounds that connect us to the natural world. There's something very special about having live musicians and dancers sharing the same space, responding to one another in real time. It gives the work a different kind of energy.

How have the collaborations with Complicité's Simon McBurney as a mentor and poet Nick Drake as co-writer shaped the production?

Working with Simon and Nick has been an incredible experience, and I've learnt so much from both of them. Simon has become like a big brother to me. He's incredibly honest, and that's something I really value about our relationship. He's not afraid to question the choices I make or challenge my thinking, and I love that because it pushes me to go deeper and really understand why I'm making certain decisions.

One rehearsal, when Nick and I had worked so hard on the script and were feeling quite good about where we'd got to, Simon came into the room and basically tore the whole thing apart! But what was amazing was that he didn't just challenge the work and leave us to figure it out. He sat with us, and we spent time going through everything together, questioning the story, the structure and what we were really trying to say. It was such an incredible learning experience, and I'm genuinely grateful for that honesty because it was exactly what I needed.

Nick has also been wonderful to work with and brings a different sensitivity to language and storytelling. I've really enjoyed the process of discovering how his words have supported my choreographic choice with the dancers alongside the music. I think what makes these collaborations special is the trust. I can be vulnerable with my ideas, knowing that I'm surrounded by people who care enough about the work and about me to challenge it. And ultimately, that's what has helped me grow, not just as a choreographer, but as an artist and storyteller.

Having grown up near Stratford, what does it mean to bring TELLUS to Sadler's Wells East?

It means a great deal to me. I have so many memories of growing up around Stratford, Barking and Newham. Playing football and basketball in the local parks, training in street dance at the Hartley Centre, getting £1 pizza on Barking Road, and going to Stratford Circus – sometimes for the dance and, if I'm being honest, sometimes for the girls!

East London was where I discovered dance and started imagining what might be possible for my life. My career has taken me around the world, but to return to Stratford with my own company and present one of our biggest productions at Sadler's Wells East feels quite emotional. When I was growing up, I could never have imagined that something like this would happen. And what makes it even more special is the thought of young people and families from East London coming to see the work. I hope a young person can sit in that audience, see the dancers and musicians onstage and think, "Maybe I could do that too."

For me, it really does feel like coming home.

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👠Surinderella is running at Stratford East from Tue 20th - Sat 31st Oct, putting a Bollywood spin on Cinderella with an overworked heroine, Insta obsessed stepsisters and a dancing cow. Romance, family feuds and a fairytale makeover, this one gives the classic story a whole new groove.

💃 The latest work from dance company Alleyne Dance, Far From Home, explores immigration and the search for a better life. Blending Caribbean, hip-hop and kathak influences, six dancers bring stories of migration, belonging and integration to the stage at Sadler’s Wells East Thu 15th - Sat 17th Oct. Thursday’s performance is followed by a free post show talk with the company.

🧵The Next Thread: Who Owns the Future of Fashion? brings together voices from fashion, tech and sustainable business for a panel discussion on how AI, circular fashion and new production methods could reshape the industry. Part of Shoreditch Sandbox’s opening season exploring East London’s fashion and textiles heritage, the free event takes place on Thu 15th Oct, with drinks and a chance to chat afterwards.

✂️ Bring your journal, old photos and treasured scraps to Curly Craft Club: Scrapbooking on Tue 20th Oct at Algha Works. Organised by Curly Femme Fashion and Rhizomatic, this beginner-friendly eve is all about collage, memory keeping and meeting fellow queer crafters, with paper, stickers, cut outs and other supplies provided.

🎬 Saint Lucian women’s stories take centre stage at An Intimate Night of Tropical Theatre on Thu 15th Oct over at Laundry Studios, off Mare St. The evening brings together four films exploring inherited wisdom, land and Caribbean women’s resilience, followed by a creative workshop about heritage and what we carry forward. There are two screening-and-workshop sessions, with opportunities to meet the filmmakers.

🕺 Discover how African diasporic jazz dance has shaped British culture over the past 200 years at Jazz Dance in British Culture, an exhibition at Gallery Café, St Margaret’s House running until Sun 8th Nov. Tracing everything from the Cakewalk, Charleston and Lindy Hop to UK jazz dance, it puts movement centre stage and celebrates the Black performers who transformed British stages, ballrooms and clubs.

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🌀 House music power couple Eris Drew and Octo Octa bring their Alchemical Sisters project to Number 90 Lock on Thu 15th Oct, teaming up for their first UK performance under the name with some psychedelic house, acid rollers and heavy grooves.

🌈 Queer imagination meets the dancefloor at SENSORIAL: SCENE THREE on Fri 16th Oct at Hackney Bridge. The night starts with an ambient listening session with Sippin’ T, before a live set from LIE NING, followed by club sounds from Dominican Republic’s Maldita Vaina, Brazil’s Kontronatura and a ROHiNA B2B Olive Juice set.

🎛️ Open Frequencies returns to LVLS on Sat 17th Oct for Frames & Frequency’s monthly open-decks session. DJs of all experience levels are invited to bring their tunes and share their sound.

💃 Salsa, Afro-Latin and Southeast Asian sounds collide at Barrio Cantón with Gia Fu on Sat 17th Oct at Colour Factory. Hong Kong-born DJ Gia Fu the lineup featuring Malaysian-Australian selector Norsicaa, Moralito B2B Pacheco, Tiff Lai B2B Dominique Roome and Pinoy Grooves, digging into everything from salsa and cumbia to Asian disco, Filipino funk and soul.

🌍 Dig into the musical connections between Brazil and Africa at Grow on Sat 17th Oct, as Brazil + Africa Special returns with Volta45 and Joe Davis, founder of Far Out Recordings.

🏘️ At 6pm today, Wed 14th Oct, Hackney Wick Town Hall returns for its final meeting of the year at Arbeit Studios, bringing residents, local organisations and creatives together to share neighbourhood priorities, hear updates on community projects and work out solutions together. It’s an open, informal space, so whether you’ve got an issue to raise or just want to find out what’s happening locally, everyone connected to the area is welcome.

♻️ The Free Community Clothing Exchange returns on Sat 17th Oct at Number 90, supported by Hackney Council and Fashion for Future. Bring clean clothes, shoes, bags and accessories to swap for something pre-loved, learn simple repair skills at a free workshop, or browse the free clothing selection even if you’ve got nothing to exchange.

🧘Social Yoga are holding a Kids Clothing, Book & Toy Swap on Sat 17th Oct for ages 0-5 years. Bring anything you’re ready to let go off (people without donations are also welcome). All items should be clean and undamaged, and toys must be in good working order with batteries included if needed. There will be a play area and light refreshments. Donation can be dropped off by arrangement during the week - DM Brian James on Insta or WhatsApp 07769 157988.

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✊🏿Hackney's Black History 365 programme is now running through to November, with a newly announced programme of grant-funded cultural projects - ranging from dance and carnival workshops to creative writing, heritage and storytelling projects. Check out the full programme here.

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🎵 The Youth Music Trailblazer Fund is now open for applications, offering grants of £2,000-£30,000 to organisations running projects that help children and young people make, learn and earn in music. The fund is particularly interested in projects that trial a new way of working, help sustain a grassroots programme, disrupt the status quo - or ideally, all three. Applications close on Fri 20th Nov.

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