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Theatre: ‘Banksy: The Room in the Elephant’
Tachowa Covington and Gary Beadle
Shin_LoveLife visits the Tobacco Factory Theatre to check out the touring play ‘Banksy: The Room in the Elephant’
Gary Beadle in Banksy: The Room in the Elephant
Tachowa Covington took the saying one man’s trash is another man’s treasure by force when he came across a water tank that had been abandoned for over 20 years and made it into his hidden palace. Little did he know that Bristol-born artist Banksy shared the same outlook and drew attention to yet another work of art. He sprayed ‘This looks a bit like an elephant’ on Tachowa’s home. He had consent but Tachowa was unaware of Banksy’s status but he was soon to find out. This is the story that inspired the one-man show The Room in the Elephant.
Attending this performance I thought I knew what to expect. How wrong was I? Extremely wrong. If I was wearing socks, they would’ve been blown off. Luckily, I was wearing dolly shoes.
Covington’s original home
We spend the first hour with Gary Beadle and his execution of Tom Wainwright’s interpretation of the journey Tachowa Covington has gone on. From decorating his new home to his exchange with Banksy and as a result of that being evicted due to his home becoming Banksy’s latest piece of artwork.
It’s an emotional rollercoaster…there are laughs, profanities and tears. Beadle takes us on this journey with him and shared with us his thoughts and beliefs. By the end, I felt like his best friend, he was so open, both spiritually and mentally.
The performance comes to a close when Tachowa is served an eviction notice from his home, moves his belongings to a nearby ‘cave’, where he’s visited and told by an acquaintance that a play is going to be made out his story. ‘It was surprisingly engaging,’ said an audience member. ‘I didn’t think one person could hold your attention for such a length of time’. For me, Beadle was great – to watch his performance was high class.
Tachowa Covington inside the elephant
The play is followed by a screening of ‘Something from Nothing’ directed and filmed by Hal Samples, where we’re introduced the real Tachowa Covington. We learn that he is a kind-hearted, God-fearing explorer. We meet him in 2008 where we’re introduced to his palace. It has decor, carpet and even CCTV… it’s already a work of art. What stood out to me was how carefree Covington is, always joyful and wise, saying ‘it’s easier to be nice than it is to be mean and God doesn’t like ugly’. Characteristics you wouldn’t think a homeless gentleman would have, although he calls himself a self-sufficient man and explorer. In the documentary we meet his mum who sadly passed in 2011 and follow him to the California beaches whilst he rollerblades by the sea in his customized Tachowa armour. The journey goes overseas to the UK where he views Beadle’s performance as him. He even gets to perform as himself on stage. It’s an uplifting and inspiring film that showcases Banksy’s celebrity status internationally as well as introducing us to Tachowa Covington the great. A person we could all learn something from, young and old. Long live Tachowa.
Indulge yourself in a clip of ‘Banksy: The Room in the Elephant’, followed by a Skype chat with Tachowa that took place in Bristol at The Station
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About the author
Shin_LoveLife
Shanai is a creative person and has always been passionate about the arts, in particular performing arts and filmmaking. She spent a year with the BBC, creating content as a Production Management Assistant working on Bargain Hunt and Springwatch 2012. She also works as a partner of The Nu-Being, a company she co-founded. She is a storyteller; She loves to tell stories and evoke emotions through acting, music videos and shorts. Since she was part of the Creative Talent Lab in Bristol in February 2014, she has produced a promotional video for an artist in LA to enhance his status within the UK. She was one of Rife magazine's founding in-house Young Journalists.
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