Chicago Tribune - Recommended
"...Kohl in particular finds a way to give Kate's amiably bossy (sometimes insufferable) personality a human dimension. She is a control freak who can't lay off, which gives the following exchange some of its tang: When asked about dinner plans that night, she explains that her husband is in charge. "How'd that happen?" comes the surprised reaction, to which Kate replies: "Just supper. I'm still in charge of everything else." It's a joke, but also very much not a joke, and both Kohl and director Green nail the rhythm of it, just so."
Chicago Reader - Highly Recommended
"...There, along with the audience, Bea's extended family and friends struggle to reconcile their empathy for her, an autonomous adult pursuing her own dreams, with their horror and resentment over the heartbreak she's caused. "This is cruel, you know," the abandoned father tells Bea (brilliantly played by Abigail Boucher) over Skype. It is, and Haven Theatre's remarkable production, directed by Elly Green, shows the unforgiving ripple effect of that cruelty on everyone involved."
Time Out Chicago - Somewhat Recommended
"...Elly Green's direction suffers from a similar lack of clarity. Overly choreographed and surrealistic scene transitions stand in stark contrast to the realistic nature of the dialogue. Joseph Schermoly's minimalist set is functional, but poorly utilized. Actors run in and out of the set as if the living room in which the majority of the action is set has no walls. A single location on stage is representative of interiors and exteriors within the same scene. The lack of consistency fails to ground the play in a world that feels real, making the cluttered plot line even more difficult to follow."
ChicagoCritic - Highly Recommended
"...Elly Green has captured the complexities of The Distance by allowing her actors to explore them without judgment, but not without consequences. Once Liam is present, Alex’s irresponsibility becomes much less funny, and our perspective on the characters shifts again as we imagine how all this must seem to the other children who are mentioned. It’s the old question of duty vs. self-fulfillment, it’s a question Green handles with sophistication."
Around The Town Chicago - Somewhat Recommended
"...I know that many a good story was written by a British playwright, but often wonder why the production company feels they must present it as an "English story" in a local production. Haven Theatre Company's U.S. Premiere of Deborah Bruce's "The Distance", a play about motherhood, fatherhood and control certainly can be easily adaptable to be right here in America with no accents used. Perhaps doing this would have made the stories more understandable. in a smart production on the smaller stage at Raven Theatre, Elly Green has smoothly directed this saga about a woman, Bea (Abigail Boucher) who has returned to England after being away for five years, leaving behind her husband and her two sons."
The Fourth Walsh - Highly Recommended
"...THE DISTANCE is a witty, rocky journey to acceptance. We see, hear and feel the shifts each person must make to put another first. I absolutely love it. I'm waiting impatiently for "The Distance II" to see how these people weather the changing tides."
Chicago Theater Beat - Highly Recommended
"...The Distance is a potential sleeper hit, a dramedy about ordinary people, the decisions they make and the lives they affect. Bruce's characters are the most human I've seen in a long while, and combined with excellent direction and a strong cast, this U.S. premiere is one for the record books. See The Distance, find yourself in the characters, and support the underdog plays that rely on skill instead of spectacle to convey the good, the bad and the ugly of adulthood."
