Mikhail Tank

Mikhail Tank, multi-media artist & producer, was born in St. Petersburg, Russia on December 30th and began performing at the age of three. By the time he reached 12, he was writing poetry and acting in community theatre, cast in darker roles such as a male witch and Haman (view 1st headshot here).

When Mikhail was just 13, he recognized that performance art can manifest itself in diverse ways. He began to see that "darkness and negativity are separate and entirely different elements. [He] believes in light and that light comes from darkness... wherein answers reside." It is this fundamental understanding that inspired Mikhail to create Darksoul™ performance art.

In 1997, Tank had honed his skills enough to win a KFOG (#1 SF radio station) "Battle of the Bands", beating out veteran artist Todd Rundgren with his debut single, Aggressor. Graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Drama (2001) from the University of California at Davis, Mikhail played the role of Dionysus (Greek-God of ecstasy and drama), directed and choreographed by world-renowned artist, Bill T. Jones. While attending university, he also premiered a one-man show to sold out audiences and received a Lobster roast award.

Los Angeles, 2004 - Mikhail won an audition to co-star opposite the elegant Isabella Rossellini on ABC's hit show "Alias". In 2005, he played the role of the devil in an Italian Film Full Moon, directed by Lazzaro which premiered at Festival Nazionale del Cortometraggio Yasujiro Ozu. Mikhail's film Disturb Things premiered at the Anchorage International Film Festival in December 2006.

2007 - Mikhail was invited to be an autograph guest at WonderCon; had his directorial debut, Believe, Smile and Love premiere on the national JLTV network; and released his first book, "The Art Studio of Life". Tank was also featured on Createspace, an Amazon company, as an example of an independent multi-media artist with book, film and music releases.

In 2008, Mikhail published a rare magick text "The Testament of Solomon" and performed a sold-out one-man show, which not only received critical acclaim, but also a commendation from Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. Tank attended the Cannes Film Festival with a debut feature film project (currently in development) and before the year's end, founded Principality Productions.

2009 saw Mikhail directing My Pretty Pony, under the dollar baby agreement, inked with legendary story writer Stephen King. Interviews were featured on top King fan sites, the premiere taking place at the venerable Oldenburg Int'l. Film Festival, followed by screenings at the H.P. Lovecraft film festival & The Netherlands. In regards to collaborating with Mikhail, veteran actor & member of The Academy Awards, Paul Marin stated: "He's a very talented Director and gets the actor to see his vision and gets the collaboration of both the cinematographer and performer." In August, Tank was invited to be a featured guest on BBC Radio & received worldwide press coverage, including Reuters & The Washington Post. He became the 1st artist in history to perform a worldwide live ticketed show, "Soul Photography" - via streaming through the Edinburgh Fringe (largest arts festival in the world), having already premiered the May stage version in Tokyo, Japan.

Mikhail started 2010, by releasing an artistic statement titled 'Untied' (read it here). In March, Mikhail went to Moscow to have meetings with two top studios, regarding a feature film project, in development (read Moscow blog here). In April, Tank's performance in the title role of the Karoliyov video comic (watch clip here) premiered at Wondercon, followed by iTunes single releases of Burst The Bubble of Hate R.P.G. Remix, Sir.Tank: Black Sheep and Hubris from the June 23rd solo show, companion album and DVD release, 'For The Special Ones' (view promo video here) "dedicated to all those who feel like they're sitting in the corners of life". The live show (with original music by Daniel Levin) took place at the famed Stella Adler Theatre on Hollywood Blvd., as part of the 1st Hollywood Fringe. (Article / Spotlight). LA Theatre Review noted the "poignant moment", where "(Tank) speaks of Leonardo da Vinci, who was dyslexic and compared him to the Ritalin-popping ADD kids of today - would we still have the Mona Lisa?" A viewer commented, "Your philosophy is timely and poetic. You say what we all feel but don't say. Sometimes there is a very thin line between being the nut in the corner and being the artist in the corner... You sparked my imagination. Made me remember how dormant my own creativity has become."