Work
CLAWS
Maker Candle House · Work date 2020-03 · Medium telephone · Role work · Experienced by the compiler 2026-04-17
Description
“i know what i saw.” Danny has a monster in his closet. He does not know what to do next. Dark, curious, and suspenseful. One act, about thirty-five minutes, phone call. Available in the USA, Canada and internationally. Part of Candle House’s help! — remote, standalone, one-act encounters for a solo participant. The participant is cast in advance as a volunteer for the Etcetera Helpline, which has been “helping with everyday life’s ‘everything else’ since March 2020, one call at a time.”
Source. https://candlehouse.org
CONSOLIDATED. This archive previously carried three separate rows for CLAWS — the original, the Overlook Film Festival remount of April 2026, and the May 2026 run. They are one work, first performed March 2020, and are recorded here as one row with the restagings noted. The company is styled Candle House. It was formerly Candle House Collective, and that name still appears in its email address and in scholarship published before the change; this archive uses Candle House throughout.
Anatomy
Thirteen criteria after Lauren R. Beck. Each carries a source grade: M maker-confirmed, P published, F first-hand, I inferred by the compiler, ? not yet established. Definitions are on the anatomy page.
- Participants listen through headphonesnoI
Delivered to a mobile phone with no headphone instruction.
- Participants move through space as part of the worknoI
A live call with no instruction to change location.
- Audio technology is necessaryyesP
The listing states it is performed live via phone call.
- Site-, situation- or language-specificnoP
The listing states you can experience it anywhere in the world.
- Engages with the history of a sitenoI
The content is a fictional encounter with a character named Danny, with no real place referenced.
- Created for an urban environmentnoP
The listing says all you need is your mobile phone, anywhere in the world.
- Created as an artwork other than theaternoI
Framed as a performed interactive thriller, naming no non-theatrical discipline.
- Intended to be understood as theateryesP
The listing says it is performed live just for you and quotes a press review.
- Accidental real-world sights and sounds are importantunknown?
The listing does not address the participant's surroundings.
Did you experience this? Tell us - Spectator must participateyesP
It is called interactive and the character 'needs your help'.
- Has live performers other than the participantsyesP
The listing states it is performed live via phone call.
- Involves game playnoI
No rules, objective or resolution state are described; it is a thriller narrative.
- Uses props other than the listening devicenoP
The listing states all you need is your mobile phone.
1 of thirteen are still unknown for this work. If you experienced it, you can settle them in a minute.