‘Constructed’
Lightpost Theatre Company
Birmingham Repertory Theatre
Birmingham UK, Main Stage

CJ Lloyd Webley, playwright / co-director
Mathias Andre, co-director / movement director
Kevin Michael Reed, designer
Simon Bond, lighting designer
Clive Meldrum, sound designer
Ebrahim Nazier, associate designer
Lauren Marie, voice coach
Hannah Finnegan, stage manager
Eleanor Deeley, deputy stage manager
Ruth Morgan, production manager

Production Photography by Hannah Kelly.

Constructed was originally scheduled to open in May 2020, however was postponed 3 times due to false starts during the Pandemic. It also moved from the smaller The Door theatre at Birmingham Rep to the Main Stage. Though our initial design was much more elaborate, the workshop at Birmingham Rep was closed throughout the pandemic so we had to simplify the design to allow for readily available materials to be used. At last minute, due to quarantine guidelines, associate designer Ebrahim Nazier was brought in to see the production through.

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“This whole brotherhood thing, the banter, the laughs. That’s what I live for… I’m not prepared to give it up. This place. This team…”

As a group of dedicated construction workers face the prospect of yet another temporary site manager on their failing construction site, tempers flare as they struggle to find a way to work their way up when their company seems determined to keep them down.

When thousands of pounds worth of tools are stolen, relationships are strained even further and company manager Marlon decides to bring his son onto the site as an ‘undercover’ apprentice. As fingers are pointed and paranoia sets in, the brotherhood of co-workers are tested to their absolute limits.

What’s hiding behind the banter and will anyone speak up?

Performed by Lightpost Theatre Company and written by Lead Artist CJ Lloyd Webley, Constructed explores the culture of working class Black men in Britain. This comic new play unpicks the challenges that face manual workers, both on site and at home, and asks if anything can be built properly when the foundations are faulty.