Our fascination with fire has its roots in ancient times. There is an inherent danger within those flames that conjures up a primal fear yet we cant help feeling mystified at the same time. These days fire dancers rekindle our subconscious preoccupation with fire and light up our music festivals, beach parties and awards evenings. Fire dancers for events are a crucial addition to the planning of any major occasion.
Fire Performance is a group of performance arts or skills that involve the manipulation of fire. Fire performance typically involves equipment or other objects made with one or more wicks which are designed to sustain a large enough flame to create a visual effect.
Fire performance includes skills based on juggling and poi spinning. It also includes skills such as fire breathing and fire eating. Fire performance has various styles of performance including fire dancing; Performances can be done as choreographed routines to music (this type being related to dance or rhythmic gymnastics; as freestyle (performed to music or not) performances or performed with vocal interaction with the audience.
One of the earliest mentions of fire performance was at the ceremony of Simchat Beit HaShoeivah during the holidays of sukkot of the Second Temple by the Jews in Jerusalem Circa 10AD – 70AD. It has been said about Rabbi Simeon Ben Gamaliel that when he was rejoicing with the joy of the Water-Drawing he would take eight burning torches in one hand and toss them upwards; he tossed one and caught one, and never did one touch the other.
Ancient Aztecs performed a fire dance dedicated to Xiuhtecuhtli, the god of fire. The Aztec fire dance is performed today for tourists in Mexico. In Bali, the Angel Dance and the Fire Dance, regularly performed for tourists, have origins in ancient rituals. Both the Angel Dance and the Fire Dance originated in a trance ritual called the sanghyang, a ritual dance “performed to ward off witches at the time of an epidemic.
Also known as the “horse dance” men perform the dance by holding rods representing horses, while leaping around burning coconut husks, and walking through the flames. The Siddha Jats of the Thar Desert n India perform traditional fire dances as part of the Spring festival. Fire dancing is performed to music played on drums and the behr. Men often perform a dance that involves walking on hot coals. A large fire is created and allowed to burn down until it is a pit of glowing embers. The performers then jump in and out of the pit kicking up the embers to create showers of sparks while women perform a dance while balancing flaming tin pots on their heads. Today this ritual is often performed for tourists.
Since the mid-1990s, fire performance has grown in popularity. This growth has occurred both for hobby and professional practitioners. Fire skills are performed at raves, nightclubs, beach parties, and music festivals. Fire performance has become increasingly popular as entertainment at corporate events, street festivals, celebration events and as a precursor to firework displays.
Fire performance is usually performed with props that have specifically been made for the purpose. Fire torches, fire staffs, fire poi, fire hula hoops, fire whips, and other fire props are all readily available.
Fire performance skills are inherently dangerous and only careful use of the props, storage of the fuel and performance in appropriate spaces will mean that the risks are minimised. Fire insurance policies all require fire performers to carry fire extinguishers, fire blankets or other fire safety equipment.
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