October 15, 2023
Charleston, SC — Xscream Scapes may be the perfect way to challenge oneself through a creepy, spooky, theatrical Halloween adventure as escape game meets haunted house in Charleston until November 4.
Smithworks Creative Arts, a local producer, designer, and fabricator of multi-media exhibits and attractions is behind Xscream Scapes. Smithworks’ founder, Trey Smith, along with his wife Traci, have been in the attractions industry for decades.
Game details
The attraction has been active since September 29.
Per a press release from Little Dog Agency, it will be the participants’ task to locate the quirky genius, Dr. Wells, who disappeared while testing his time machine. As attendees advance through multiple horrifying time periods in their quest to escape, they’ll need to navigate secret passageways and complete thrilling challenges.
“The attraction utilizes live actors and contains loud and sudden noises, occasional flashing lights, and scenes of horror that may be disturbing,” per the release.
There are time slots in which the attraction will be without live actors for those desiring a “less intense” experience.
Xscream Scapes is open to all ages, but is not recommended for ages 12 and under.
Tickets must be purchased online only and in advance for a specific date and time slot. Admission and ticket purchases are prohibited at the door. Guests are asked to check in 15 minutes before their scheduled time.
Each time slot allows for up to eight guests with the experience lasting approximately 35-45 minutes. An entire time slot may be purchased for a private experience.
Admission tickets
- $36 per person after 6pm or
- $30 per person before 5:30pm on select days.
Trey Smith, founder and owner of Smithworks Creative Arts said, “This is a unique attraction where as its a merger of a haunted house with escape game elements, but it’s more like hidden passageways and things.”
He added on:
“I wanted to come up with something that didn’t say escape games. It’s not an escape game. I wanted something that was haunted house like.”
He came up with ‘Xscream’ because this is an extreme kind of escape game/haunted house. He utilized the term ‘Scape’ because of the scenery and visuals, wrapped up in the immersive environments.
The Experience
When asked about thetime travel component, Smith said it allowed for multiple immersive environments.
“I wanted people to have a reason to transition from one to the other,” he said.
He even created Dr. Wells’ storyline.
“You will enter a time machine each time to go to a different time period. You actually progress through this like a haunted house but you have to figure out how to do it.”
There are four different time periods merged with different dimensions because of Dr. Wells. There is evil and other “messed up scenarios” involved in ancient places, a medieval castle and ultimately bring participants back to the present. Smith called it a “messed up present.”
For those worried about being grabbed or touch, actors respect people’s personal space.
The main attraction is in an inside facility. Smith said this makes day times hours more feasible without actors.
“I want everybody to have a good time and go, ‘That’s not like anything we’ve ever done before.’ I wanted to so something different,” he said. “I wanted to bring something new to people – a new type of entertainment.”
When Halloween is over, Smithworks will use its space year round for other storylines they have planned.
Trey Smith – Exhibit Extraordinaire
Smith has been involved in audio production for forty years.
“It goes back to when I was a teenager. I played guitar in bands and fell in love with audio production,” he said.
He was born and raised in Nashville, Tennessee. He built his own recording studio there in 1983.
Smith started in a garage, but grew the presence of the studio so much, he had to move the studio into a commercial building. The building was a three story house on a busy highway that is reminiscent to Rivers Avenue.
By this time, it was 1990. He didn’t have enough money to fix and finish the studio and pondered how to raise money to do so. He and his friends always were attracted to Halloween and did weird things for the fall event.
He thought of opening up a haunted house in his studio with coffins and skeletons. He said he became known as the recording studio in Nashville with coffins and skeletons.
Smith said it was so successful, he did it again in 1991 in a different building.
He sold his studio in 1998 and started working in production of big events. He went into the haunted house business because it was booming!
This is Smith’s niche so much, that he has worked at a video production company as the audio engineer. Then he got into AV, set building, special effects, show control systems, animatronics and more.
He and his wife thought about moving to Charleston in the 1990s, but they didn’t do the big move until 2000.
They started Fright Nights at Boone Hall Plantation in 2004. He did that until 2015 (only taking one year off to focus on another Halloween themed project).
They established Smithworks in 2015 to do other projects rather than Halloween focused designs. The couple also started escape games for different organizations. They have built 60-70 escape games for organizations from Honolulu to Bermuda to Canada to Texas.
He said everything he learned over the years in design and production he brought to Smithworks.
In reference to Xscream Scapes, “What we’re doing now, it’s evolved immensely and is so far technologically advance. It is fully automated with live actors,” he said. “It’s a pretty advanced show.”
Production of Xscream Scapes
Xscream Scapes was drawn straight from Smith’s noggin.
“I did the initial design three years ago. We were so busy with escape games and museums. It kept getting put off.”
He said last year, he and his team said they were going to make it happen in 2023.
“We started prepping ourselves and finished up some projects to bring it fully in-house. We started the infrastructure stage since the first of this year.”
From there, they delved deeper into the project.
By the end of June this year it was their full focus.
He said, it’s an amazing amount of work that goes into it that people don’t realize is there.
Talent! Talent!
Smith has employed enough actors for the Xscreams attraction. However, he is always looking for talent.
“Our production is unique. Whereas a lot of haunted house actors jump out with quick scares. With us, we engage with the guests longer.”
For Halloween night, they will space out groups ten minutes apart to offer that longer engagement, more theatrics involved and enough to scare people and build up sense.
According to Smith, “You have time to think and wonder, ‘What’s behind a door or is that a secret passage?”’
While folks may be used to an escape game with puzzles and clues. This is activity base. It is not puzzle driven, bust has interactive actions and activities.
He added that it is investigative, explorative and an interactive adventure that engages everyone in the group and still creepy.
“We’re taking the best of the interaction of escape game world and the best of the haunted house world melding them together.”
Xscream Scapes can be found at 2430 Air Park Road near Aviation and Remount Road in North Charleston.
