A painfully funny play about motherhood (and fatherhood), about keeping control, and about letting go. Good friends should be there for one another – no matter what. But when Bea returns home after five years abroad, having made a bold choice about her life, old friends struggle to support her, or even to understand. One night in Brighton, things threaten to slide into chaos... Deborah Bruce's play The Distance was premiered at the Orange Tree Theatre, London, in October 2014. It was a finalist for the 2012-13 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize. 'Lively, funny... Bruce is very good at exploring the mixed emotions that result from a major domestic upheaval and at analysing the clamorous demands of female friendship' — Guardian 'Bruce's writing is punchy and full of truth-telling charm... observant, funny and rooted in the real... a highly emotional and intelligently taboo-busting evening' — The Arts Desk 'Sharply written... compelling' — The Stage 'Riveting, complex... an expertly blended mix of drama, wit, intelligence and sharp, fast-paced dialogue' — A Younger Theatre