Crimson Eyes -
The Walking Play
The Story
Crimson Eyes - The Walking Play is an innovative and immersive experience, based on Alan's short stage and radio play (monologue) Crimson Eyes. However, the Walking play version is much longer, with lots of additional and new material to really bring Phoebe to life - in the place that she lives.
Listeners meet Phoebe - a fictional street-homeless woman - at a pre-arranged location at St. Martin-in-the-Fields in London (The Tandoor Chop House, 8 Adelaide Street WC2N 4HZ) and download (from walkingplays.com) and use an innovative app. on their phones to walk through the West End of London with Phoebe, whilst listening on their ear buds / headphones.
Phoebe tells her story of how she became homeless and what it’s like to live on the streets. Listeners accompany her on one of her one-hour “Walks”, on a pre-defined route along the streets of London:
St Martin’s in the Fields - The Strand - Charing Cross - Embankment -
Fleet Street - St. Paul’s
Along the way, Phoebe points out places of interest and relevance to her life - e.g. the Arches where she sleeps; the “feeding station” where she gets free food from volunteers; the park where she spends lots of her time; and the Police Station where she’s spent plenty of nights in the cells !.
It’s a great way to walk in the shoes of a homeless person, and experience a little about their life on the streets – as well as enjoying a lovely walk past famous landmarks, through wonderful parks and along the Embankment.
One of the aims of Crimson Eyes -The Walking Play is to dispel some of the myths and stereotypical views held by some members of the public about homelessness. It illustrates how a stable, comfortable person can spiral into misfortune and misery, ending up on the streets.
But be prepared - it’s a grim, gritty tale that combines real-life misery with spates of humour and irony. Phoebe also uses some choice language !
Alan teamed up with talented actor Isabel M. Patterson to help produce and to voice the part of Phoebe - and to also help devise the route. Isabel has performed in a range of stage productions and has worked extensively as a screen actor.
“We had a lovely day in London working out the best route to set the play and timing how long it takes to get between Phoebe’s different places of interest to best make the experience work best” said Alan.
Isabel said “Working on Crimson Eyes with Alan, to adapt his brilliant monologue into a Walking Play, has been a really eye-opening and creatively rewarding process. When I first read the script, I was struck by Phoebe's sense of humour that came through Alan's writing - and her enduring spirit through the events that had taken place in her life. I enjoyed voicing Phoebe and bringing her complexities to life”.
Alan was interviewed by BBC Essex Presenter, Rob Jelly, about Crimson Eyes - The Walking Play on Rob's early evening show in February 2024. Rob played a 5-minute first-hear clip from the play.
So, if you have an hour or so to spend when you’re next in London, why not meet up with Phoebe and take a walk with her.
Crimson Eyes – The Walking Play can be downloaded from walkingplays.com
The Route
Phoebe
