Running partners
The Distance, a new, cutting-edge piece of theatre that brings mental health to the fore, will support the Trust during its run at the Edinburgh Fringe. Writer Ben Norris told us more.
Ben Norris is an actor, playwright and filmmaker. His most high-profile work to date has been The Choir of Man. Described as “an uplifting celebration of community and friendship”, this award-winning musical had a successful four-year run in the West End, having started at the Edinburgh Fringe. It highlighted men’s mental health in the tragic context of there being one male suicide every 90 minutes.
Towards the end of last year, members of the Trust’s brilliant fundraising committee went for a night out to see the show. They chatted to Ben and told him about our work. “As I found out more,” says Ben, “I thought I would love to work with the Trust in some way.”
This was good timing – Ben had been working on a new show called ‘The Distance’, a unique production billed as “part play, part extreme workout – a sweat-drenched exploration of ambition, identity and letting go.”
The Distance is a fictional adaptation of Ben’s own story as a former elite runner – though he’s keen to stress it’s not just for sports fans. He explains:
“It’s not a show about sport. It’s about dreams, about what makes us who we are and how we assemble and disassemble ourselves at various times according to what happens in our lives.”
As time went on, Ben began to see further possible links with the Trust, its origins and aims:
“The more I read about Charlie and his interest in sports and in theatre,” he says, “the more I thought this might be a good opportunity.
"The Distance addresses some of those more difficult themes quite directly, which are relevant to the Trust’s work. It’s about a young man whose life completely loses direction. He really struggles with his mental health and how to move on to a new chapter.
"I’ve spent a lot of time in the last few months really trying to hone the ending so that it strikes a tone that is quietly hopeful and redemptive – without, obviously, trying to minimise the pain he’s in and the fact that, when you’re in those moments, you can’t necessarily see a way out of them.
“I'm lucky in that, with my own experiences of periods like that, I have been able to find a way out, but that's not always been guaranteed. I've certainly had some really dark times and some really challenging moments.”
It’s this personal knowledge and experience of those dark times that made Ben think of the Trust when considering charity partners for the production. He says:
“You guys were at the forefront of my mind. It felt like a really good fit, to promote that message of looking after young people in those vulnerable moments; to increase awareness of the Trust’s work and raise some money for you.”
The Distance opened at Summerhall in Edinburgh on 6 August and runs until 31 August. The hope is that it will continue to have a life after this. We wish Ben every possible success with it and we’ll keep you posted.
You can buy tickets for The Distance here: Ed Fringe Tickets – The Distance
The playtext is published by Nick Hern Books. 50% of the profits will be split between the Trust and Beat, the eating disorder charity: Nick Hern Books – The Distance
