THE ESSENCE OF THE JOB IS SPEED: THE DELIVERY DRIVERS’ PLAY

“That’s how I feel every day. Like I’m taking the piss. Not essentials. Not food or medication. Not stuff people actually NEED.”

Load the parcels, scan the app, make the drop - the essence of the job is SPEED. Alone in their vans, Shane and Mark keep each other company as they power down the motorway at the crack of dawn. When your life is governed by the threat of scoresheets and sanctions, a friendly voice ringing out the handsfree is just the soundtrack you need.

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Commissioned as part of The Key Workers Cycle at the Almeida:

If the Tube ground to a halt . . .
If the supermarket shelves emptied . . .
If your bins overflowed . . .
Would it feel like something, or someone, was missing?

A chorus of delivery drivers singing through the night, a support worker haunted by visions of the women who depend on her, a funeral director showing off his dab hand with a pair of clippers. In an echo of the Medieval Mystery Plays – which brought together communities of craftsmen and merchants to act out the stories of famous miracles – The Key Workers Cycle presents a cycle of nine short plays celebrating the humour, the hope and the stories of those who keep our daily lives running.

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The Key Workers Cycle was produced at the Almeida, 9 -12th March 2022. The Delivery Drivers’ Play was performed by a company of ten community and two professional actors, directed by Jack Nurse.

A “highlight”, an “insight into the hectic, taken for granted life of delivery drivers, which roved from the ridiculous - talking parcels - to the sublime: a grief stricken round of Ave Maria.” - The Telegraph

Photos by Ali Wright