Untitled design (1)

“WeCameToDance is an an interactive, interplanetary musical adventure imparting an urgent political message while working the pulse.” –Matt Wolf, The New York Times

WeCameToDance by Food Tank is a smash success! Featured on the BBC, Good Morning Britain, ITV, Al Jazeera, and in the New York Times, The Guardian, The Telegraph, The Times, The Independent, the Irish Times, Herald (Scotland), National (Scotland), and dozens more.

⭐⭐⭐⭐+ The Stage, The Scotsman, Edinburgh Reporter, The List, Edinburgh Guide, Musical Theatre Review, and more.

“WeCameToDance by Food Tank is an interactive extravaganza about sustainable agriculture.” –Fergus Morgan, the Stage

“To my eyes (ears, arms and legs), WeCameToDance is a blast – but one that carries a serious message. The music and choreography are exuberant and uplifting.” –Kelly Apter, the Scotsman

“WeCameToDance created a stir at the Edinburgh Fringe enlisting Scots in the battle against climate change. They are working with Nourish Scotland to ensure the show has a legacy, with audiences given a five-point plan to help change behaviour around consumption. They are also being encouraged to sign Nourish Scotland’s petition to the Scottish Government to change food policy.” –Nan Spowart, The National (Scotland)

“WeCameToDance will be the next hottest trend.” –Playbill Magazine

“Glorious music and dancing! WeCameToDance has so much energy — catchy, happy, and positive! When you immersive yourself in singing and dancing the sustainability message becomes so more embedded in your consciousness.” –BBC

After sold out workshops with rave reviews in New York City, WeCameToDance by Food Tank, was the breakout hit of the 2021 Edinburgh Festival Fringe a completely sold out run of 35+ performances in partnership House of Jack, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the United Nations Environment Programme, and the World Food Program USA.

Selections from WeCameToDance were commissioned and performed at the 2021 UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow.

During the performance audiences interact with aliens from a real exoplanet (they call it “Hanyana”) that we have imagined in partnership with Dr. Steve B. Howell at NASA Ames Research Center. The performers will sing in their own language created by famed linguist David Peterson, who developed Valyrian and Dothraki for HBO’s “Game of Thrones.”

Alongside the cast, audiences groove to music created by Grammy-nominated Ghanaian artist Rocky Dawuni and participate in synchronized dance originally designed in New York by Mary Page Nance of Broadway’s “Finding Neverland” and “The Great Comet” and choreographed and directed for the local debut production in Scotland by award-winning Ashley Jack and Becky Enoch of House of Jack Studio in Leith, Edinburgh.

Our interactive musical tells the story of extra-terrestrial life that arrives on Earth to warn its inhabitants of a climate crisis, after barely surviving catastrophe on their own planet. While guiding you in a fully immersed experience through rhythms, dance, and song, the characters relay a call to action and convey the tragedy of a changing climate — yet a sense of hope percolates through each and every motion, movement, and note is infused with hope.

Food Tank devised, developed, and commissioned WeCameToDance within a creative collaboration that mirrors its own non-traditional and decentralized mission to empower communities in coalition.

Thank you to our presenting United Nations partners the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the United Nations Environment Programme, and the World Food Program-USA (WFP)

WeCameToDance found its full manifestation through the creative producing & dramaturgy of Adam Hyndman & Bernard Pollack; music / lyrics of Rocky Dawuni, Allen René Louis, Douglas Romanow & Ximone Rose; script & spoken words of Elizabeth Eaton; developmental choreography & direction of Mary Page Nance; linguistics & language development of David Peterson; and creative devising of Lindsey Jones, Geena Quintos, and Kristin Yancy.

The creative community of collaborators who shared in the journey of WeCameToDance encompassed many, and will undoubtedly extend to countless more! A few additional collaborators deserving particular note being Whitney Mosery, Danielle Nierenberg, Eve Gleeson, Jeff Solomon, & Mia Yoo — thank you for your early trust and investments in this vision of community, change, and joy!

A very special thank you to the Germeshausen Foundation, the Kroger Foundation, and Kirsten Wrinkle for making this incredible endeavor possible.

NOTE: This is not passive entertainment. For this experience to work we need you to arrive fully and engage wholeheartedly — we promise when you do it will have a fiercely powerful impact.

Meet the WeCameToDance Global Team:

Waleed Abdulhamid
Music / lyrics
Rocky Dawuni
Music / lyrics
Elizabeth Eaton
Co-writer of script and spoken words
Eve Gleeson
Collaborator
Dr. Steve Howell
Collaborator
Adam Hyndman
Creative producing and dramaturgy
Lindsey Jones
Creative devising
Allen René Louis
Music / lyrics
Mary Page Nance
Developmental director / choreographer
Danielle Nierenberg
Collaborator
David Peterson
Linguistics and language development
Bernard Pollack
Creative producing, co-writing, and dramaturgy
Geena Quintos
Creative devising
Douglas Romanow
Music / lyrics
Ximone Rose
Music / lyrics
Kristin Yancy
Creative devising

Meet the 2021 Edinburgh Fringe Festival World Debut Team:

Ida Casilli
Associate producer
Becky Enoch
Co-director
Susie Gray
PR and publicity
Simon Hanson
Musical director
Catherine Idle
Stage manager
Ashley Jack
Co-director and choreographer
Rosamund McCormack
Costume design
Alexandra Lort Phillips
Creative producer
Tom Sergeant
Production manager
Natalie Slaiman
Collaborator

Meet the 2021 Edinburgh Fringe Festival World Debut Cast:

Caitlin Anderson
Emmanuella Damptey
Sophie Douglas
Stefanie Eadie
Ella Gilling
Betty Valencia
Food Tank Membership

You have Successfully Subscribed!