Seaside fire show: safety, staging, questions to ask

What is checked before anything else

Before the choreography, three elements: the venue’s written agreement, suitable fire extinguishing equipment within immediate reach, and a dedicated safety person who does not dance and does nothing else.

The applicable rules depend on the venue, the municipality and sometimes the establishment’s insurance. Do not assume that a show seen elsewhere is authorised at your own venue: ask the venue what it requires, in writing.

Distance and wind

The perimeter is not measured by the size of the artist but by that of their props in rotation, plus a margin. A spinning staff occupies far more space than it appears to from the front.

Wind is the decisive factor by the sea. It moves the flames, throws the fuel and makes unpredictable what had been rehearsed. A serious artist will cancel or adapt an act rather than force it through — take that as a good sign, not as a whim.

• —A clear floor, free of vegetation and of trailing tablecloths.
• —An audience seated or clearly contained, never moving around the act.
• —No flammable decoration within the perimeter: dry palm fronds, drapes, balloons.

The staging

Fire is seen all the better when everything else goes dark. Lowering the ambient light during the act doubles its effect, at no cost.

A fire show rarely holds for more than fifteen to twenty continuous minutes without wearing thin. Two short appearances, one at the opening and the other at the close, often leave a stronger mark than a single long block.