Performers twirled flames on the Plaza over a decade ago; Ashland Fire and Flow has brought the practice back, with permits and precautions
By Kayla Heffner for Ashland.news
Playing with fire might sound dangerous, but a group of seasoned performers is combining dance with flames, bringing back a part of Ashland’s culture that hadn’t been seen in over a decade.
Every Wednesday, kids, adults, anyone can enjoy watching fire dancing downtown on the Ashland Plaza.
The event organizer, Lauren Angell, started Ashland Fire and Flow. She remembers how fire spinning used to happen every Friday on the Plaza. She has brought the tradition back to the community of Ashland.
Don’t worry, though. These are professionals, and Angell has obtained all the necessary permits through Ashland city officials, allowing for these sanctioned events to take place weekly, with fire safety precautions at every event. The practice harks back to a 2,000-year-old traditions that dazzles onlookers as they watch people manipulate flames.
The practitioners use various flow toys or tools. A performance may include baton spinning and tossing, juggling pins, fans, knives and sword dancing and fire poi — weighted balls of fire at the end of cords — all accompanied by the art of flow.
Performers use various objects with wicks or braided fabrics that are meant to be lit on fire as a form of creative expression and entertainment, creating entrancing visual effects.
Handmade dance tools
Nate Carlson uses braided ropes he spins with both hands.
“These ones I designed myself,” Carlson said. “It’s got a double handle with a juggler’s handle and finger loops. These are called monkey fist knots, which are balls spun together, one in each hand.”
Carlson has been doing fire spinning for the last two and half decades.
“I saw it at a party once 25 years ago and I wanna get into this,” Carlson said. “Back then there wasn’t much on the internet, there was no YouTube. So it was like reading a page in a book that told you how to do the tricks, and me and a buddy would play around learning different tricks.”
Many of the performers at the Plaza agree that it’s nice to have a space where people can get acquainted with fire spinning and learn about fire safety with the proper protocol. That way someone isn’t doing tricks in their backyard not knowing what to do.
Glad to see it back
Carlson is excited to see fire spinning happening back in the Plaza.
“It just brings the community together, gets more eyes on it and lets people see something they wouldn’t normally see,” he said.
“Every time I do it, I guess it kinda lightens your life and makes your life a little bit better, and I wanted to share that with others. To me, it’s the sound of the fire whooshing past your head, all eyes are on you, and it’s a good feeling,” Carlson said. “I’ve taught others how to do it and get into it. It’s a good way to meet others,” he said.
It’s a workout
Carlson says it helps keep him in shape too. “I’ve never gone to the gym in my life, I just do this. It kind of energizes you and breathes life into your soul.”
There are many different types of fire spinning.
One of the other Fire and Flow performers, Alfred Voss, uses a variety of sticks he’s been making since 1992.
“They’re called flower sticks, also commonly known as devil sticks,” he said.
Real devil sticks are made of solid oak. They are narrow in the middle and wider at the ends, with no tassels. Flower sticks are solid fiberglass with a silicone coating and with tassels at the ends.
People can purchase flower sticks at Bugg’s Toys in Ashland. The purveyor of the store can teach people the basics so they can play with the fire sticks safely.
Started in 2008
Voss said he started fire spinning in 2008. He grew up in Illinois and met people making fire spinning toys in the summer of 1992 during a Grateful Dead tour.
Voss was one of the original fire spinners in Ashland 15 years ago. One of his favorite tricks is to drop-kick sticks 15 feet into the air. He says there are only a handful of people in the world that perform that style of throwing double sticks. Voss sells his version of flower sticks, called ‘Just Sticks,’ online and at Bugg’s Toys.
Another fire artist, Kamariah Morningstar, has been fire spinning since she was in middle school.
“I’ve always had a thing with fidgeting,” she said. “I started with socks filled with rice, spinning that, then I got into LED poi, then eventually fell in love with the scary part of fire and how powerful it is.
“You only have so much control with fire, but that’s what makes it more intriguing. You’re getting to play with something that is volatile. And getting to harness a little bit of that energy yourself is pretty powerful and amazing.”
Morningstar started spinning fire in 2011. She said it’s an intense hobby that people enjoy watching even though they may not want to do.
The ‘awe factor’
“It’s crazy to watch people play with something that’s so dangerous, something you can only control so much. It’s its own force, but it’s fun to watch people play with it.” She added, “It’s just that awe factor of there’s no fear, these people just enjoy this crazy form of art and it’s cool to share it with others.”
Morningstar said fire dancing is something Ashland was known for years ago and that she remembers when she was a kid riding her skateboard downtown to see people performing on Fridays in the Plaza.
“This town is based on arts and theater,” she said, “so to have it back is bringing back part of this town’s culture.”
Some of Morningstar’s favorite tools to use are a dragon fire staff, fire fans, and spitting fire. She loves spinning fans and how majestic they look, twirling them around her face doing various choreography.
Musical accompaniment
Angell, the event organizer, wants this type of activity to be all inclusive for the entire community. Ashland Fire and Flow has been combining music with its acts for another level of artistic expression. Several DJs have been performing every week with the group as well, so the performers and spectators can dance along to feel a part of the event.
Two of the DJs, Jeffrey Smith and Jordan Rose, are part of a music collective production company called Deep Demand Music and help co-produce the silent disco on First Fridays in Ashland.
“Lauren spoke with us after one of the silent discos and here we are, community connection,” Smith said, “We had a rough few years here with the pandemic and the fires. It really shut down all the art and entertainment in Ashland. So these types of events are a sign that Ashland is thriving and back.”
Used to perform on Fridays
Rose grew up in Ashland and remembers live music and fire from spinning years ago.
“I think when I was 21 I saw the El Circo crew, who performed at Burning Man based out of Southern Oregon. I grew up in Ashland seeing that and being inspired by that, and we would perform music and spin fire every Friday for hours.
“It’s exciting to see it back and being done right.” It’s an important collaboration of art and music happening again.
“I always thought of the Plaza as carrying some old energy in town as a gathering spot. We do the silent discos in front of the park, and that is sort of our new gathering spot. Something felt very right about doing the performances right here in the Plaza and having everyone gather here feels energetically like a power spot in Ashland,” Rose said.
“I have a daughter, an 8-year-old kid I’m raising in Ashland. I want her to see the place where she lives is a town full of diversity, culture, life, entertainment and fun things going on. That’s my goal with throwing the silent discos in the park on First Fridays and think that’s why I aligned so much with Lauren doing fire shows here in the plaza,” he said.
First, get permission
Angell said she wanted to bring back fire spinning to the Plaza. “First thing I did was I messaged the fire marshal about spinning fire in the Plaza because I know it was something that used to happen in the past. He sent me over to the city of Ashland and I got in touch with them and they made up a new permit for us that allowed amplified music and pyrotechnics,” Angell said.
Angell’s father, a civil engineer for the city of Medford, created an aerial plan visually to site the fuel station and safety zones, and distanced the event away from any of the buildings or businesses nearby. This way people can come out and spin fire and watch or learn how to safely do fire spinning in a safe spot instead of at home, where it might be dangerous.
Angell feels like this is a sign for Ashland turning the corner again for art and culture.
“I could feel something in the air. It feels like a real summer again. I’ve had a lot of people hitting me up now this event is happening,” Angell said. “People are wanting to bring belly dancers, painters, drummers. People just want a place where they can express themselves, have fun and be entertained. I’d really love for this to be a hub for everyone.”
Angell happened to see a fire dancer with a dragon staff on Instagram and it clicked in her head she wanted to start performing too. She began meeting flow artists and it became her obsession, she said. She did the research and bought a fire staff.
Veteran performer
Angell has a dozen different props and she loves to spin them. She has performed for 10 years, including shows on MTV and at various music festivals, and she started a fire troupe.
Angell is also starting lessons for kids, including learn fire safety and how to have fun. It’s important how to use the right fuel, keep it contained, know how to put it out, how to use a fire extinguisher and fire blanket. Also it’s important to use fire-safe clothing and make sure props are built safely.
Angell talked about the neuroscience of flow.
“When you start getting into a flow state doing tricks you can naturally connect and make those different wavelengths in your brain,” she said. “It’s just a beautiful place to be.”
She said it has given her a sense of community that she hasn’t been able to find anywhere else. Angell said fire dancing is a safe and sober event that allows for connection, friendship and a bit of a cathartic release too.
Anyone interested in the event can watch fire spinning from 7 to 11 p.m. Wednesdays. The DJs host silent disco at Lithia Park on the First Fridays and third Wednesdays of each month as well.
Journalist Kayla Heffner lives in Ashland. Email her at [email protected].
