Hula fire tools .. will light up your darkness and make it glow

There are many different "hula fire tools" used in fire dancing shows, from single end ”fire sticks” to double ended. The fire ” Poi” is a swinging, twirling fire tool that can be easily worked by the performers hands, there are also the fire nunchaku’s a martial art weapon that can be used in fire shows.

The ”fire sticks” are mainly made from aluminium making them a lot lighter than their Polynesian cousin the ” hula fire knife” which has metal blades on one end or both ends of a piece of wood. With the lighter weight of the fire sticks the fire dancer can spin them faster than normal creating the illusion of a flaming ring. These fire sticks are used mainly in competition and circus type shows, with other fire implements along side a juggling fire-eater.

Hula Add-Ons

The fire ” Poi” is another member of the hula fire tools family, this fire spinner is basically a fire ball at one end attached to fire proof wiring and is used the same way the “Maori Poi” is performed with in cultural shows. The fire ” Poi” was used to strengthen the Maori warriors wrist, hand and forearms for using their various weapons. The fire ” Poi” also when spun gives different fire shapes in performances than the ”fire sticks” so as like the Maori warriors you needed to make sure you practise your craft.

“NOW” the hula fire knife” .. Yes a knife used to perform fire shows. This particular tool was a machete knife with single or double-ended blades made with a strong piece of wood like a sledgehammer handle and then lashed together. The fire knife could weigh 5 to 7 kg’s so the handler would need to have practised the spinning and twirling techniques to control the weight this instrument could exert.

Many South Pacific countries such as Samoa, Tonga, The Cook Islands and Tahiti to name but a few have adopted the hula fire knife” as their own. They all pretty much perform the same moves because they have studied each other’s techniques and there is only so much you can do with "hula fire tools" like the "fire knife", while adding in their own actions which can be very similar to the fire dancers of other countries.

So the next time you see a fire dance performance you will be able to relate to the show easier because of what you now know. So enjoy the heat and have a “Flaming Good Time”

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