Alan Ayckbourn saw the Damsels in Distress productions as a unity. The plays, together with their Scarborough acting company, transferred to London's West End, receiving critical acclaim. But the London management found it difficult to promote the package. Audiences, they thought, were confused by the performance schedule. Some plays, they said, were not as well liked as others and the lack of star names didn't help. They took the decision to reduce the three plays to a single one, without consulting the playwright. It was an unacceptable decision for him and caused a rift with his long time London producer, Michael Codron. This was an event with profound consequences. Ayckbourn had been providing hit comedies at the rate of one a year for twenty-seven years - most of them produced by Codron. It was an arrangement both partners found comfortable and beneficial. It had been very significant for both. The important thing to note is the effect this had on Ayckbourn's writing. After the death of his agent, Margaret Ramsay in 1991, and the loss of his producer, Ayckbourn was now without two important artistic guides. It could have been disastrous. But, arguably, the rupture caused by Damsels in Distress had a beneficial effect. It changed the nature of Alan Ayckbourn's plays. He no longer played the role of darling of the West End theatre and, freed from that obligation, found a new direction. He decided to concentrate his work at Scarborough and in future, without first seeking a West End showcase, his own company would undertake national tours.

From this time he tackles different themes, moving away from the pursuit of marital bliss as a subject and into other areas. From 2002 the plays sometimes end at surprising points; they use multiple protagonists; they play more daringly with genre in a search for the perfect mix of comedy and tragedy. There are of course some complete disasters, some retreats into comfortable territory and some plays that are only partially successful. But at their best they are more mature and intellectually daring than the early successes.

There are some real surprises. Snake in the Grass (2002) had a cast of three women. Ayckbourn explains: