Dickson Mbi won an Olivier award for his last major dance piece, Enowate - a result that surprised some of us who saw a talented artist still mastering the craft of choreographing a full-length work. His new one, Tellus, at Sadler's Wells East in London, is a much more sure and expressive work that creates a confident, textured world. Consider the apprenticeship officially complete.

Mbi is now not only a choreographer but also a composer - a skill he honed during the pandemic - and the score is an essential part of the choreography. There are musicians on stage behind the eight performers, and the music is full of haunting melody and emotional pull. It effectively shapes and enhances the action and, crucially, speaks with the dance rather than politely waiting its turn.

Tellus is a kind of folk tale about finding hope in a world in environmental turmoil. The gist of the story (you may need to refer to the programme, because the plot does not exactly hand you a summary) is of a lost and stumbling central figure, a community struck by fire and drought, and an appeal to a goddess, Mami-Wata, for help. It draws on Mbi's Cameroonian heritage, as do the music and the movement, which also takes in Mbi's roots in hip-hop, with contemporary, South Asian and classical dance seemingly all in the mix. Why settle for one tradition when you can braid several?

There are flashes of brilliance in the choreography, rousing ritual movement for the group and individuals with strong movement signatures: a spinning, leaping Nathan Goodman; an imperious, tottering Hannah Joseph. The show runs at Sadler's Wells East, London, until 24 October - presumably giving the goddess ample time to respond.