The search for Carlos Miguel Allende and the revelations about his life and knowledge are the bones of this post- modern detective story.

In short, the story follows a niece wanting to find her uncle whose life has been overshadowed by his involvement in secret government experiments in meta-physics, namely quantum mechanics, teleportation and matter transportation. There is a strong element of fun within the play, and it is clear that the research has really captivated the company.

The open staging and simple set of chairs and tables focus the audience's mind on the subjectivity and subtlety involved in interpretation, analysis and truth. The scenes fluidly morph from one to another. There is no discernable end or start to them. The stage dynamic is graceful, precise and expertly crafted. Each of the four company members shift persona effortlessly and manipulate the stage space with expert precision. Each movement on stage seems calculated to exaggerate life's complex causality leaving us wondering if anything can exist in isolation, removed from any knock on effects and having no cause.

The manipulation of the tables and chairs on the stage gave a strong indication of how together this group of performers are. With the pinpoint accuracy needed for lighting and movement on stage the cast showed a real control of their physical surroundings. It's difficult to explain how difficult it is to get so many movements so accurate in the dark, when, once set, the lights come up to the precise edges of the item moved. This is almost scientific precision! This sense of togetherness and understanding really worked well, allowing the chance and chaos implied within the plot to feel spontaneous and random. You got the impression whilst watching 'Tangle' that the complex web of life created to tell this story had been very meticulously planned and rehearsed, over and over.

The plot is far more than a niece looking for her inspirational uncle. It asks us what we believe, how we will uncover the secrets kept from us by powerful governments and if and why we believe them when they tell us there's nothing going on. Yes, it's about the search for truth. Not a truth, but the truth, the how and why of what is actually happening, all around us, everywhere. Truths like intuition. Truths like probability. The truths of life. In the end the search, the journey and project Tomsk provide an appropriate vehicle within which the complex webs of life can be established, played with and re-ordered according to the as yet little understood rules of science and nature.

Uncle Carlos' life unfolds one turn at a time. From his time with the US Navy and his subsequent discharge for an unspecified disability to his time in the Merchant Navy, to his involvement with Einstein and his work on Quantum Entanglement. The two scientists, Jocelyn and Hamish, who are involved in experiments into matter teleportation, are revealed to have wildly differing ideas on its use and the morals and ethics involved. They convey their fascination for the subject and understanding of the principle involved with an impassioned urgency, but there is tension between them.

We follow Flora's search for her uncle and the hiring of a freelance detective, Malcolm, and move to England. Here we find that the experiments have been secretly continued in a secret underground bunker beneath Wimbledon. We witness what may well be the final experiment in matter teleportation, at least by Hamish. It is possible. It can be done,
kind of. And uncle Carlos? Well, we are led to believe that he died at his home in Colorado in 1986 of heart failure after spells living in Texas and New Mexico where he wrote letters to Einstein regarding the motive powers of UFOs.

Tangle is a brilliant example of devised theatre, performed by a fantastic company working from cutting edge, modern scientific theory and creating a great piece of thought producing, entertaining theatre. Well done Unlimited.