Calling Darkness
Calling Darkness is a horror comedy podcast written by Gemma Amor and S.H.Cooper. It was co-created by S.H.Cooper, Gemma Amor, Victoria Juan, Allison Brandt, Desdymona Howard, and Charlotte Norup who each play characters in an ensemble cast.[2] Kate Siegel narrated the first season. The first season was released in 2019 and the second season in 2023.
| Calling Darkness | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Presentation | |
| Hosted by | Libsyn |
| Starring |
|
| Genre | Horror comedy |
| Format | Audio podcast |
| Written by | S.H.Cooper and Gemma Amor |
| Narrated by | Kate Siegel |
| Language | English |
| Length | 25–55 minutes |
| Production | |
| Theme music composed by | Brandon Boone |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 11 |
| Publication | |
| Original release | February 14, 2019 – July 13, 2023 |
| Provider | Realm Media; Audio Drama Queens |
| Related | |
| Related shows | The NoSleep Podcast[1] |
| Website | callingdarknesspodcast |
Premise
Four women go to Crowe House, an isolated manor, for acting lessons from Annabelle Crowe. They are joined by Annabelle's visiting cousin, Nadia. The group read a book which accidentally summons a demon. They try to escape Crowe House and defeat the demon with help from a priest and his friend.
Cast
- Kate Siegel as the narrator
- S.H.Cooper as Bridgette Milsen
- Gemma Amor as Gloria Smith
- Victoria Juan as Mariela Williams
- Allison Brandt as Cassie Waters
- Desdymona Howard as Annabelle Crowe
- Charlotte Norup as Nadia Olsen
- Erin B Lillis as Mrs. Morwood
- David Cummings as Mr. Morwood
- Dan Zappulla as Phineas Daws
- Owen McCuen as Father Montgomery
- Graham Rowat as the demon
List of episodes
Season 1
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "Class Is In" | S.H.Cooper | February 14, 2019 |
| 2 | 2 | "A Sticky Situation" | S.H.Cooper | February 28, 2019 |
| 3 | 3 | "Bathtime" | Gemma Amor | March 14, 2019 |
| 4 | 4 | "Someone At The Door" | Gemma Amor | March 28, 2019 |
| 5 | 5 | "Women In The Wallpaper" | S.H.Cooper | April 11, 2019 |
| 6 | 6 | "Cheek To Cheek" | Gemma Amor | April 27, 2019 |
| 7 | 7 | "Digging Up The Past" | S.H.Cooper | May 23, 2019 |
| 8 | 8 | "It's All Going To Hell" | S.H.Cooper | June 13, 2019 |
| 9 | 9 | "Betrayal" | Gemma Amor | June 27, 2019 |
| 10 | 10 | "Burning Down The House" | Gemma Amor and S.H.Cooper | July 11, 2019 |
Season 2
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | 1 | "We're Not In Crowe House Anymore" | S.H.Cooper | March 23, 2023 |
| 12 | 2 | "I Hear Dead People" | S.H.Cooper | March 30, 2023 |
| 13 | 3 | "Where All Hope Comes to Die" | S.H.Cooper | April 13, 2023 |
| 14 | 4 | "It Might Be His World, But We're Living In It, Baby" | S.H.Cooper | May 4, 2023 |
| 15 | 5 | "Bovine Intervention" | S.H.Cooper | May 22, 2023 |
| 16 | 6 | "Something Is Rotten In Denmark" | S.H.Cooper | June 1, 2023 |
| 17 | 7 | "Pretty Flies For A White Guy" | S.H.Cooper | June 15, 2023 |
| 18 | 8–1 | "Rebuild The Beginning" | S.H.Cooper | June 29, 2023 |
| 19 | 8–2 | "To Get To The End" | S.H.Cooper | July 13, 2023 |
Development
The concept was developed by Gemma Amor, Allison Brandt, S.H.Cooper, Desdymona Howard, Victoria Juan, and Charlotte Norup who wanted to get into voice acting. Amor and Cooper decided to write the show while all six would feature as actors. Both writers had contributed to The NoSleep Podcast and approached David Cummings for advice on how to produce the show. Cummings became an Executive Producer, and helped involve Kate Siegel. Teaser episodes were released in 2018 and the first season followed 2019; Amor and Cooper had planned to write and release the second season in 2020, but it was delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic.[3]
Reception
By October 2020, the podcast had reached 200,000 downloads.[3] Writing for The A.V. Club, Elena Fernández-Collins observed that the show's "sharp, integral focus on character relationships, mostly in the ways that they hate each other, that allows for humorous moments even when someone is being dragged to their doom".[4] Writing about the first episode, Crescenda Long also praised the dark humour.[5] A review by Elle Turpitt in Divination Hollow – which publishes reviews of horror, sci-fi, and fantasy – was positive about the podcast and highlighted the balance of the ensemble cast and the characters' development.[6]
Awards
| Year | Award | Nominee/Role | Category | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | AudioVerse Awards | Allison Brandt as Cassie Waters | Performance of a Role in an Ensemble Cast for a New Audio Play Production | Won | [7] |
References
- "Calling Darkness: the Podcast", gemmaamorauthor.com, 28 January 2019, retrieved 2021-11-18
- "About: The Cast and Crew of Calling Darkness Podcast", callingdarknesspodcast.libsyn.com, retrieved 2021-11-18
- "388: Gemma Amor on Calling Darkness, Haunted Pubs, and Being Kind To Yourself". This is Horror (Podcast). 2021. Retrieved 2021-11-18.
- "Women Of Marvel celebrates the women of superhero history", The A.V. Club, 2019-04-08, retrieved 2021-11-18
- Long, Crescenda (2019-02-23). "Podcast Review: Calling Darkness". Dusk & Shiver. Retrieved 2021-11-18.
- Turpitt, Elle (2019-09-23). "[Review] - Calling Darkness Podcast". Divination Hollow. Retrieved 2021-11-18.
- "Winners of the 2019 Audio Verse Awards". AudioVerse Awards. Retrieved 2021-11-18.