BAFTA-winning writer Abi Morgan makes her Royal Court debut with a play about the 30-year relationship of a real-life couple.

Based on tape recordings made during their relationship, The Mistress Contract tells the story of an 88-year-old woman and 93-year-old man, known by the pseudonyms She and He, who live in separate houses in the same city on the west coast of America.

The couple first met at university, but lost touch before being reunited again 20 years later. They embarked on an affair and in the three decades that followed, He provided her with a home and income, while She offered ‘mistress services’.

When She requests that her lover signs a contract outlining their agreement, questions begin to arise as to whether her actions are brave, honest or an act of betrayal.

A remarkable document about this unconventional couple and the contract that kept them bound together from the writer behind The Iron Lady, The Mistress Contract is directed by the Royal Court’s Artistic Director Vicky Featherstone.