Disney, Trivia Contests, Escape Rooms, Stephen Sondheim, Crosswords, and Puzzles

Eagerly awaiting the next season of Reality Escape Pod? Great news! Season 11 is just around the corner. While you wait, enjoy a special compilation from Season 10. Our editor Steve Ewing, has chosen a memorable clip from every episode. It’s the ideal way for new listeners to get acquainted with the podcast, and the perfect trip down memory lane for our devoted fans.

This season featured a variety of talented creators, escape room owners, designers, game makers, and even a live audio escape room that first debuted at RECON Remote in 2025. 

One of our dream guests launched the season: Puzzlemaster Will Shortz. This episode was filled with fascinating stories about his time working at Games Magazine and his early years editing the puzzle section for the New York Times.

Other veteran creatives this season included Jim “The Oz” Olivia, who helps run the World’s Largest Trivia Contest, and Doris Hardoon whose years as an Imagineer at Disney yielded many insights for us into what it took to create “the happiest place on earth” at EPCOT and later at Shanghai Disney Resort.

We uncovered the parlor game and puzzle obsessions of Broadway legend Stephen Sondheim with author Barry Joseph, who has published an in-depth look at a little-examined facet of Sondheim’s genius. 

Adam Bellow detailed the process of developing escape room-inspired educational kits for classrooms all over the world through the work of his company, Breakout EDU.

Of course, we had many standout escape room owners share their trials, tribulations, and moments of triumph. Will & Kim Rutherford, owners of Escape Artist Greenville, Stephen & Stevie Kristof of 60 to Escape in the Chicago area, and Jonathan Driscoll & Sacha St. Dennis of Escaparium in Montreal, where RECON will be held in August of 2026. 

Zach Sherwin will be at RECON Montreal, running his hilarious act The Crossword Show. He joined David & Peih-Gee to chat about its development, and what it’s like to be a comedy rap star on YouTube! And we caught up with Rita Orlov & Lauren Bello of PostCurious to learn about their latest collaboration in the world of boxed puzzle games. 

As always, we featured a couple episodes that were pure fun. Yannick Trapman-O’Brien & Lyra Levin played Mark Larson’s audio escape room: BLOT. On our Holiday Special, REA team members Theresa Piazza and Andrew Reynolds tested their mettle against Peih-Gee’s Playhouse word puzzles.

Finally, we received the yearly industry report from RoomEscapeArtist.com Editor-In-Chief Lisa Spira. She walked us through her data analysis concerning escape rooms in 2025, including trends in booking times, revenue, and the growth of challenge arcades.

If you want even more podcast episodes, consider joining our Patreon. For only $5 a month, you’ll get access to our Bonus Aftershow, which is a more casual conversation with each guest.

Thank You to Our Sponsors

We are immensely grateful to our sponsors this season: REA Patreon Backers, PG’s Playhouse, Buzzshot, and COGS. We truly appreciate your support of our mission to promote and improve the immersive gaming community.

Topics Discussed in this Episode

• 00:46 – Will Shortz, The Puzzle Master
• 05:51 – Barry Joseph, Matching Minds with Sondheim
• 11:43 – Will & Kim Rutherford, Escape Artist Greenville
• 19:06 – Sponsor Break: Buzzshot, Escape Room Marketing Software
• 20:55 – Jim “The Oz” Olivia, The World’s Largest Trivia Contest
• 27:26 – Stephen & Stevie Kristof, 60 to Escape
• 32:31 – Adam Bellow, Breakout EDU
• 36:59 – Jonathan Driscoll and Sacha St. Denis, Escaparium
• 41:58 – Rita Orlov & Lauren Bello, PostCurious
• 49:04 – Doris Hardoon, Disney Legend Imagineer
• 56:10 – Zach Sherwin, The Crossword Show
• 1:00:58 – Yannick Trapman-O’Brien & Lyra Levin Play BLOT
• 1:06:00 – Holiday Special featuring The REA Team
• 1:10:14 – Lisa Spira, The State of Escapes
  

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Got a question or thought for the podcast? You can submit a voice recording by calling the Room Escape Artist not-so-hotline that always goes straight to voicemail (551-227-7273).

About Steve Ewing

Steve is passionate about all things audio-visual. A childhood King’s Quest compulsion became a zeal for escape rooms. A high school NPR habit evolved into a podcast addiction. A lifelong love for PBS science shows became a career filming and editing for National-Geographic/ Lindblad Expeditions.

He is thrilled to lend his talents as an editor for the Reality Escape Pod, Club Drosselmeyer, and Morty.app.

Steve loves to be surprised by an escape room that’s off-meta. Flip the script on any element — the way you build a set, open a lock, or even give a hint and you’ve got his attention. He’s even been suckered in by a fake refrigerator door.

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