Rachel Laird is a freelance dance artist based between London and Scotland.
Since being freelance Rachel has performed for English National Opera in Turn of the Screw and Orphée, Garsington Opera in Eugene Onegin, Highly Sprung in CASTAWAY, Peut-Être Theatre in SHH...Bang! And Tidy Up, Levantes Dance Theatre in High Tea (With a Twist) and Canape Art, Next Door Dance in The Beautiful Game, Roisin O'Brien in A Falling Ballet, Abby Warrilow in Carbon Copy Immersive performance for Hidden Door, The Natashas Project in On Demand, Tess Letham Dance, A Truefitt Collective and Page One Theatre.
Commercially she has been in music videos for Dua Lipa, Mary Middlefield, Hilang Child, Private Agenda and Cuckoolander. Outside of performing she has choreographed and taught across Scotland, England, Copenhagen and China. Recently she co-movement directed the play ‘After Sex' at the Arcola Theatre.
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Rachel is also a co-founder of Sliding Doors Collective alongside fellow Scot Clara Cowen. The Dance theatre duo had their debut sold out performance at Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2019, followed by sold out performances in London including Rising Tides and Resolution Festival 2020 at The Place. Since the pandemic SDC have done 2 residencies at Citymoves Dance Agency and 1 residency at Trinity Laban, performed at Dance Live and Dumfries and Galloway Arts online festivals and received an IGNITE award from Trinity Laban. As of 2022 SDC have received Arts Council England funding and completed an R&D for their film ‘Let’s just make the most of it’. In 2023 SDC hosted their first scratch night at Centre 151 and premiered their film.
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Previously she trained at Copenhagen Contemporary Dance School for her Postgraduate, Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance for her BA (Hons) degree and prior to this at The Scottish School of Contemporary Dance. During this time, she was lucky to have worked with Gustavo Remirez Sansano, Lotte Sigh, Morten Innstrand, Yael Flexer, Filip Van Huffle, Theo Clinkard, Hagit Yakira, Heidi Rustgaard, Dam Van Huynh, Joan Cleville, Matthew Robinson and Anna Kenrick among others.
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Image by Maya Yoncali
Highlights from her training include:
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Re-staging of Martha Graham’s work Panorama revised by Jacqueline Bulnes.
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Being a member of the National Youth Dance Company of Scotland for four years where she toured nationally and internationally including India, Belgium, Ireland and London (Sadler’s Wells)
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In 2017 performing alongside Van Huynh Company in Under This Weight in Kolkata, India as part of the Dance Bridges Festival
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Dancer for Gianna Burright during her MFA at Trinity Laban. This included a residency in Amsterdam when she was mentored by Ria Highler.
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Image by Maya Yoncali
Rachel Laird, seemed completely at home with her language, and inhabit the stage with the maturity and ease of a professional.
— Joan Cleville, Project Y Review

Laird and Cowen achieve the near-impossible feat of making dance feel integral to the moody tenderness of their relationship.
— Izzy Rogers, Dance Art Journal
Images by Maya Yoncali Photography