Dance To My Tune

'Dance To My Tune' incorporates one of the strongest messages received from young people - that we need to respect and value those that are weaker than or different to ourselves, be they human or animal.

Set in the future, but written in the style of a Russian folk tale, ‘Dance to My Tune' is a moving and thought-provoking story of a remarkable journey taken by a young Russian woman and a brown bear - the last brown bear in the world. The impoverished woman plans to sell the bear to the highest bidder but her quest for fortune becomes a journey of self discovery as she is forced to confront her own weaknesses and prejudices.
 
As well as bringing up issues of extinction and using animals as objects of entertainment, the play challenges its audiences to explore and question relationships and attitudes - to ourselves, to other people and to other species. Top British illustrator Lo Cole designed both the set and the costume for this tour.
 
As a result of the success of ‘Dance To My Tune, Lynx was commissioned by Suffolk County Council and Suffolk Health to work with young people on the subject of mental health. Robert Rigby and two actors worked with GCSE students from 20 Suffolk high schools to devise pieces on the subject of vulnerability, disorientation and bullying, relating these issues to humans and animals. These pieces were then performed by the high school students to their feeder school pupils.

Dance To My Tune illustration by Lo Cole