Props to Our Techies!

What makes NOVA shows consistently high quality, safe, and fun?  Having reliable technical support.  Without our techs, we would struggle to meet a safety and structural standard worthy of our audiences and event organizers.

Safety is priority number one for any fire show we do.  A fire show is exciting to behold precisely because of  the element of danger that exists when spinning flaming objects.  It is a multi-sensory experience for the audience (and for us!): the sound of spinning flames, the brilliance of burning light, the smell of the smoke, the feel of the heat....

As with many trained and experienced performers, what we are really offering is the illusion of danger because we strive to make these shows as safe as we possibly can.

We take many precautions to minimize risk.  Most importantly, we have trained safety technicians as our spotters.  They watch for rogue flames, they guard our fuel zone, and they enforce audience security by making sure they stand behind the designated lines.  They help us smother our fire spin props with strategically placed blankets.  They assist in spin prop fuel dipping.  They know the location of extinguishers and how to use them.  They are trained in the event of an emergency.

Knowing we have made every effort to ensure a safe show allows us NOVA dancers to fire spin in confidence and focus on our performance.

We have many people who help us put together our shows.  Construction crews, computer wizards, sound techs, welders, photographers...  We thank you with all our hearts!  We really couldn't do it without all of your skills and support.  And here they are, in no particular order because they are all so equally fabulous...

Kristi Walker

Meghan McMurran

Mike Clark

Owen Embree

Jordan Musto

Lori Miller

Steve Rasmus

Sarah Kerr
Ron Pogue

LeighAnn Vaughn

Doug Murdoch

For some photos of our support crew, please visit our photo page

The makings of a NOVA Show

Two dancers climb above the crowd onto small platforms.  Their costumes shimmer as they catch each other's eye, smile, and begin to weave flaming poi in unison, perfectly matched to the music.  They're relaxed and having a great time!

This is what you'll see when NOVA Firespun performance Arts puts on a show, but what goes into creating one of our spectacles?

A typical 20 minute fire dance production will involve hours of troupe practice, in addition to the solo time each dancer takes to master her flaming toys and performance style.

putting together the swords routine

 Although NOVA operates as a consensus-based collective, each member's special skills are called upon to create a pleasing presentation.  Each show will have original costumes and soundtrack to fit the theme of the event.  We're a crafty bunch and enjoy sewing sequins, mixing music and hammering platforms as much as building flaming swords, hoops, staves and even assisting the welder to create our fire fans!

Behind the scenes we work throughout the year to make sure our presentations are safe for all.  By writing and revising our Safety Procedures, working with Spotters and local Fire fighters, maintaining a Fire Safety Kit, we have built a responsible Safety Crew who is looking out for the audience, the venue, and the NOVA Girls.

And behind every one of us is our family.  Our kids who have 'seen it all', our significant others who have lent us tools, trucks and trailers, and listened to all our ideas, as well as our talented friends ~now official Trained Safety Crew/photographers/and babysitters!

Many hands make light work, and since we're 'playing with fire' it is truly a labour of love, warmth, and light!

NOVA at Rain and Fire Festival

We ignited the passion of the community with a performance in Spirit Square in front of the Tidemark Theatre, Campbell River,  to celebrate the Rain and Fire Festival, Friday Feb 25 and Saturday Feb 26, 2011. 

The core group of NOVA dancers delighted with flaming swords, fans, poi, staves and hula hoops.  The performance embraced the element of fire, each dancer moving with the flames and each other to celebrate the beauty of the sacred fire and the natural world.

This is a multifaceted story telling festival produced by the Campbell River Arts Council.  The NOVA Fire show is only a small part of an exciting four day arts experience!  Each year the festival is produced in a different community.  The Campbell River Arts Council has been selected to produce this year's ‘Rain and Fire Festival of Story’ from February 24-27.  Focusing on ‘storytelling, this Festival will feature artists and performers in music, theatre, dance, spoken word, and visual arts at venues around the downtown core.

Fire Shows will take place just after sunset both nights.  Friday night's Fire Show will precede the Mother Mother concert at the Tidemark Theatre.

for a video montage of the festival click here: http://www.crarts.ca/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=73

We wrote the book on Fire safety

Wellllll, we wrote OUR Fire Safety Procedures manual! Thanks to the North American Fire Arts Association (NAFAA) for their fabulous online resources, we have compiled our version of a safety manual. It is basically a run through of the procedures we implement for our various fire performance situations.


We call it: Open Flame Performance :: Standard Operating Procedures.

It contains detailed write-ups of:
-Performer and Crew Responsibilities
-Equipment Specifications
-Performance Space Requirements
-Spotter training notes
-Glossary of terms
-NAFAA checklist for Fire Marshalls
-NAFAA checklist for Fire Performers
-NAFAA fire performance Permit Application
-MSDS sheets for the fuels we use
-Fuel discussion information
-First Aid certifications for performers and crew.


We have worked with our local Fire Department, making them aware of our procedures and fine-tuning our manual with them.

If you are hiring us, you should be aware of our procedures and work with us to create a venue-specific safety plan for your event.

contact Tracey ("Fire Safety info" in the subject line) to find out more:
novafirespunarts@gmail.com