XAVIER DE SANTOS

'This is the Land explores the 'eerie'; a sensation of unease and discomfort generated by the existence of something where there should be nothing, a presence of an unknown entity which disturb our normal perceptions. Inspired by the recent 'folk horror' revival, This Is The Land considers how the eerie can exist in the lightness as well as in the darkness.​

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Five roving figures erupt from the earth, these outsiders don't have to belong somewhere to be at home; they are firmly rooted in the land. These shapeshifting figures take us on a cyclical journey through the seasons, with fragmentary stories arising through juxtapositions and collisions of time. The stage is a 'wish't place', where the distance between the living and non-living is 'thinner', and the past is momentarily accessible. Here we glimpse something of our mysterious relationship with the land, which extends beyond story and explanation. This Is The Land summons these ghosts to defy the rational and logical, inviting an audience to be open to attune to their own experiences of what is resounding from the land.

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Our language is a combination of compelling movement and dance, live vocal-looping, metamorphosis of objects,  five shapeshifting performers, and an atmospheric original soundtrack. The production is stripped back to an abstract and expressionistic style, which is highly visual, visceral, and physical. 

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Created in collaboration with performer's Leeza Jessie, Xavier De Santos, Samuel De La Torre, Sofia Velez, Alice Barton,and music composed by John Baggott.'

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