Tora Hed: Let it Land

“It is a small rectangular patch of land with an uninviting gravel floor that conceals amongst its grey stones a myriad of strange souvenirs: tiny plastic children’s figures, “it’s my birthday” badge, a butter knife, a lighter, several varieties of broken glass. It is surrounded by roads and a narrow strip of trees on all four sides. It is mostly kept empty, neither particularly welcoming nor instructive for any specific activity, merely a space for passing through, it seems; a shortcut from one road to another. Occasionally it functions as a temporary base for a covid testing centre or a funfair – and then returns to its usual state stripped of any clear purpose or use.” – Inari Hulkkonen

Tora Hed (she/her) is a Leeds-based choreographer and performer, originally from Sweden. Hed works across art forms and her practice focuses on collaborative processes, exploring the complexity of the body and themes around care. She works with Yorkshire Dance’s ‘In Mature Company’, delivering movement sessions with elderly care home residents, finding ways to reduce physical pain with movements and combating isolation through touch.

Let it Land is a film and dance piece with three parts, created by Hed with her performance collaborators Sarah Maria Cook, Inari Hulkkonen and filmmaker Sunny Vowles. The work explores intimacy and touch as a way of being together in public spaces. Each part of the film shows a different sequence of movement, also known as a score, which has been developed by Hed during her PANIC! bursary project.

Hed is interested in what happens when you take dance practice outside of theatres. Let it Land was performed and filmed at a site called Cinder Moor, a multipurpose open space of flattened land, which had been used as a COVID-19 testing site.

Learn more about Hed’s process in the audio interview below.