Teachers Debevec, Kurz, Nielsen compete in Netflix’s ‘Floor is Lava’ game show

By Zoe Howard

Executive Features Editor 

Science teachers Teresa Nielsen and Karl Kurz, along with math teacher Daniel Debevec check off a bucket list item by competing on a game show.

Debevec, Kurz and Nielsen competed in the Netflix original series, ‘Floor is Lava’ for a $10,000 grand prize. Television host Rutledge Wood hosts this game show that brings the childhood game of floor is lava to an extreme, with an intense obstacle course.

“We filmed it in May of 2019, and then we never heard from them again, and I thought we would never see it,” Nielsen said. “Then, all of a sudden in June 2020, they emailed us and said it was coming out.”

Nielsen had told Kurz that it was a dream of hers to be a contestant on a game show. When Kurz received an email in the spring of 2019 from MysticArt Pictures asking if he would be interested in finding a team of three teachers to compete in a game show, Kurz knew Nielsen would be perfect. Kurz had been on game shows prior, including Wipeout with Principal Dr. Ben Dale, so Kurz was used to getting casting calls.

“It has been a lifetime goal of mine to be on a game show. It has been on my bucket list for as long as I can remember,” Nielsen said. “I lost my chance [to be on The Price is Right], and I figured I was never going to get on a game show.” 

Kurz and Nielsen then asked Debevec to be the third member of their team. A few days later, they filmed a video for their online application in Nielsen’s lab to show why they should compete on the show, submitted photos, and then had a telephone and full Skype interview. They were picked to compete in the show and filmed the show that spring.

“I was pretty excited, and I kept trying to tell myself ‘live in this moment’ because you’ve been waiting for this literally for decades of your life, and your dream is coming true right now, so try to be in the moment and appreciate it,” Nielsen said.

Before going on set to film the show, the teachers had to be medically checked out to show they were physically fit. Then, they spent two full days at the set in Burbank, and during that time, they were interviewed, filmed a lot and did a lot of waiting. 

“One of the neat things… was to see how a show was put on,” Debevec said. “Not many people get to see the background… what goes on behind the scenes and what it’s really like behind there. That was a blast. I’d never seen something like that, and doing it with friends, Mrs. Nielsen and Mr. Kurz made it fun.” 

Debevec, Kurz and Nielsen were contestants on the third episode of the 10 episode series, titled ‘The Planetarium: Level 1.’ Each episode has a unique theme, in addition to an elaborate set and three groups of contestants. All they knew before filming was that the show was a cross between floor is lava and an escape room. 

“When you first go in there, and you open you’re just like ‘oh my gosh,’ Kurz said. “On TV, the jumps look small, and I’m telling you when you’re there it is not, it’s much farther than it appears. I don’t know if it’s the angle that you’re looking at it, and then all of the sudden, you’re like ‘what do I need to do here’… and that lava is extremely slippery and hot.” 

They hoped to win the grand prize and put the money towards patio furniture for the teachers on the rooftop of the Math and Science Building. Debevec, Kurz and Nielsen ended up placing third in the episode.

“[During the game show, I thought] I want to win, we need to finish this. We need to get the patio furniture for the rooftop up there,” Kurz said. “I don’t want to disappoint Costa at all, being a teacher there… but you’re just trying to make sure you can get across, do everything you need to do, and just try things; it just didn’t work out.”