“When the Greek messenger Pheidippides was sent to Athens to announce the Persian’s defeat, in The Battle of Marathon, he ran 42.2 kilometers without stopping, burst into the Athenian assembly, delivered his news and died on the spot.”

These are the opening words of the below video, sent to us all for a very, very important reason. Dressed head to toe in spandex,  Humphrey, also known as ‘Humps’ needs our help.

For a long time, Sydney has come to know and love Sydney Festival‘s Festival First Night. This year things are being shaken up a bit, in a very exciting way. Now known as Day One, the opening will be split into three incredible acts.

This is where you come in, at the very beginning, for the very first act.

To open the Sydney Festival on January 5th, ‘Humps’ will run 42.2 kilometers live on stage, in homage to his hero Pheidippides. Already joining him are his spandex-clad troupe, Haus da Humps, a to-be-announced celeb MC, and of course a load of your favourite community and sports groups from around the traps.

Alas, he needs our help. We are his dancing army.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, this is indeed the perfect opportunity to throw on your very best spandex (I know you have some in the back of your drawers), and cheer/dance with Humprhey and his crew ’til they cross the on the spot finish line.

I should inform you, though, that this will need plenty of endurance, training and practice. Combining sport, biological science, video, art, live performance and mass crowd engagement, the event will be a five hour spectacle and you may be at physical and mental risk. Especially at the mass dance finale.

That’s why Sydney Festival has created this 9 minute instructional video teaching you all the things you need to know about dance. Particularly of the Gangnam-style genre.

So please, grab your sparkly spandex, a water bottle or two and join us in learning how to dance the dance, in homage to the 42.2 kilometer marathon run by Pheidippides. But really, do it for our unlikely hero Humphrey, as he creates an entertaining spectacle.

Yeah, we’ll also be filming the whole thing.

What :: Sydney Festival Day One, Part One – Fun Run
Who :: Humphrey ‘Humps’ an unannounced celebrity MC, Haus de Humps (Humphrey’s dancing troupe).
When :: January 5th, 2013, 9:30am – 2:30pm
Where :: Hyde Park
How Much? :: Free, family friendly and suitable for all ages.

Read more from Jayne Cheeseman