Battery Farm

Mind control, cannibalism and chimpanzees are just a few of the subjects touched upon in Gregory Burke’s Battery Farm, the penultimate play in the Traverse’s 'A Play, A Pie, and A Pint' season. Directed by David Maclennan, the play presents a darkly comedic prophetic vision of life following a worldwide disaster and ensures that you’ll never look at an aged steak in the same way again.

Set in the not so distant future, Battery Farm begins on Kate's (Denise Hoey) first day of work at one of Ouroboros Industries’ 7-star luxury contentment facilities, a home where the old and rich are stored in hibernation for up to 50 years before their flesh is harvested to be used for meat. As her new colleague, James (Alan Bissett) trains her in the necessary protocols, history and reality of working with the elderly; he decides to wake up guest NN 777 (Andy Gray), who then makes a startling confession.

Packed full of Burke’s scathing one-liners and trademark black comedy, Battery Farm is the follow up to 2009’s Hoors. No topic is safe as Burke takes a swipe at bankers, capitalism and vegetarians but it’s the older generation and their decisions regarding the environment - specifically the need for oil - who suffer the most. With all animal and plant life extinct following an unknown and catastrophic environmental disaster, it’s clear that the younger generations of the world are paying heavily for the excessive lifestyles and innumerable mistakes of their ancestors.

Here, Burke presents his answer to the problem of finding an alternative food source, while simultaneously taking care of the growing number of geriatrics in the population: industrialised and legalised cannibalism. At the very core of Battery Farm is a social comment on our opinions towards, and treatment of, the aged population and it is this message that gives this black and bleak comedy its almighty bite. Gray is on top form in his portrayal of an older man devoid of youth, family and dignity, but it’s Hoey’s somewhat exaggerated turn as a naive carer that overshadows the play’s simple but effective message.