Humanity Hallows Issue 6 Out Now
Pick up your copy on campus or read online
By Salman Shaffi
Manchester’s HOME recently staged a performance of the Fringe First Award winning play Tank.
Set in the 1960s, Tank is inspired by the notorious Dolphin House experiments when, during the cold war space race, NASA began to fund research into communication with dolphins. As part of the experiment, Margaret Howe Lovatt volunteered to spend 24 hours a day in isolation with a dolphin named Peter. The research was far from conventional, with attempts to teach Peter English, dealing with his sexual urges and experiments with LSD just part of Margaret’s role.
Based on these bizarre real events, Tank is satirical and absurdly brilliant, with Breach Theatre demonstrating the absurdity of what will be done in the name of science and politics. Experiencing misogyny in a male dominated environment, Margaret attempts to communicate with Peter, her hilarious repetitions of “Helloooo” and “Ball” showing the superficiality of the experiment.
Fragmentation furthers the sense of hilarity in the performance while also carrying tension. A video screen above the stage adds to the fragmented nature of the stories told below, while a video of Peter stares at the audience in a loop, overlooking the on-stage hilarity. A mixture of comedy and unease continues as the performers discuss if a description of Margaret’s legs, or describing her as a cowboy, is important to the exploitation of intelligent life on earth: misuse of scientific research on animals and agricultural industry cloaked in the hilarity of masturbation jokes.
Tank also feeds into a sense of psychological horror as the dolphins are presented through human actors, who move in and out of being either human or animal. Therefore, when pain and frustration are enacted, we hear the sounds of Peter’s distress processed through an incredible sound design which provides a strange dolphin like voice.
Ultimately, it is not only the captivity of dolphins at the heart of Tank but constraints around humans, who move from the front of the stage to the tank for water throughout the play, and whose offices are transformed into a tank.
For more information about upcoming events at HOME, visit www.homemcr.org
Featured image and gallery: Truck Festival For almost thirty years, set within the rolling fields of Hill Farm in Steventon, Oxfordshire, Truck Festival has been a cornerstone of the British festival calendar. Dubbed the ‘godfather of the UK’s small festival scene’, the festival continues to live up to that title, with a line-up packed with…
Featured image: American Football – American Football album artwork The debut album has long been treated as a baptism of fire for artists – the deciding factor that determines whether a band will ‘make it’ or not. Some debuts set the tone for what follows: Arctic Monkeys’ Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m…
Featured image and gallery: Lucy Elson-Whittaker Jeff Goldblum & The Mildred Snitzer Orchestra come to the Palace Theatre in Manchester to celebrate the release of their new album, Night Blooms. Liverpool-based Brooke Combe opens the evening with a stripped-back set alongside her guitarist, her soulful vocals instantly captivating the crowd. Blending heartfelt performances with quick-witted…
Featured image and gallery: Sally Stretch Three decades after they first emerged in Manchester, Take That return home to the Etihad Stadium and deliver an unforgettable show, combining circus theatrics and crowd-pleasing hits from across their catalogue. Formed in 1990, the group have released multiple chart-topping albums and embarked on numerous world tours, including 2009’s…
Leave a reply