Forums > Social Discussion > how many Hoppers fire perform for a living, full or part time?

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bluecatgeek, level 1
5,300 posts
Location: everywhere


Posted:
morning.

was just wondering about this recently, as HoP has grown massively over the last two years(i joined under a different name almost exactly 2 years ago as member 1555)

so: if you fire dance or perform with fiery arts for a living could you post here or pm me?

thanks most kindly
Rob(full time fiery)

Holistic Spinner (I hope)


_Clare_BRONZE Member
Still wiggling
5,967 posts
Location: Belfast, Northern Ireland (UK)


Posted:
Hey there Rob

Hope all is well and you're not freezing to death - goddam it's chilly this weather.

I do shows every now and again for clubs in Belfast. Nothing in anyway professional, though. So maybe semi-part-time?!

I work full-time in another job, so I just don't have the time to practice enough to get to that stage.

Take care xx

Getting to the other side smile


vanizeSILVER Member
Carpal \'Tunnel
3,899 posts
Location: Austin, Texas, USA


Posted:
I used to do it part time when I was in grad school. I do it just for fun now since I have several friends here in berlin trying to earn all their livelyhood from it and I don't want to steal any of their business for a little bit of extra cash that is not big thing to me but essential for them.

-v-

Wiederstand ist Zwecklos!


DurbsBRONZE Member
Classically British
5,689 posts
Location: Epsom, Surrey, England


Posted:
Me - but you know that smile

Burner of Toast
Spinner of poi
Slacker of enormous magnitude


UCOFSILVER Member
15,417 posts
Location: South Wales


Posted:
Me...if there is anything that needs doing locally...

PeleBRONZE Member
the henna lady
6,193 posts
Location: WNY, USA


Posted:
Do you mean only fire or fire as part of the performance?

Anyway..me..full time..for several years now, but fire is only a portion of what I do...

And you knew all that anyway cuz yer a smarty pants! tongue

hug

Pele
Higher, higher burning fire...making music like a choir
"Oooh look! A pub!" -exclaimed after recovering from a stupid fall
"And for the decadence of art, nothing beats a roaring fire." -TMK


strugzBRONZE Member
Carpal \'Tunnel
3,964 posts
Location: Southampton - Possibly..., United Kingdom


Posted:
Me part time......i guess.....when the oppertunity arises biggrin

But if all the others are anything to go by - you already know that wink

"...We don't stop playing because we get old, we get old because we stop playing......."


bluecatgeek, level 1
5,300 posts
Location: everywhere


Posted:
hi pele and all.

i meant as any part of a performance, with some sort of regularity...

i know a lot of performers who aren't on hop and this surprises me a little.... i find it a brilliant resource for pushing my own limits...

R

Holistic Spinner (I hope)


SpitFireGOLD Member
Mand's Girl....and The Not So Shy One
2,723 posts
Location: Calgary, Alberta Canada


Posted:
Part time here, and very part time. I would love to make it more full time, as would Mand.

Solitude sometimes speaks to you, and you should listen.


JakBJCmember
117 posts
Location: Norwich, UK


Posted:
I dont fire twirl for a living (lack of insurance) but i do perform on stilts and teach most other circus skills live juggling, diabolo, tightrope... part time.

PeleBRONZE Member
the henna lady
6,193 posts
Location: WNY, USA


Posted:
I have to say this as well, in several parts of the US I have run into an extreme lack of concideration from one "professional" to another.

I recently was recently on tour, and in some US cities what I heard was they couldn't wait to "Suck the moves from me and spit them back out." There were about 10 people who wrote and said, "Well, I am a professional too so can I take for free." and even, "When you are here we would like for you to perform with us for free." The last person who did this returned to find their entire routine was pilfered by their "hosts".

This, to me, does not display a professional attitude in anything, but one of massive insecurity and selfishness.

But a big part of it is also because they can not actually make a living doing just fire. They are finding competition difficult, attitudes poor and they do not want to compromise the use of fire for something else.



In this manner, I know many not on HoP, or online, who do many of these arts without fire at all, and they use themselves, their audiences, and advanced studies in other areas to enhance and advance themselves.



I'm alot like them Bluecat. I long ago stopped looking in any of the technical areas unless notified to do so, for many, many reasons. But I progress in a variety of other ways without it.



*shrug* That is just me though. wink



ubblove to you

Pele

Pele
Higher, higher burning fire...making music like a choir
"Oooh look! A pub!" -exclaimed after recovering from a stupid fall
"And for the decadence of art, nothing beats a roaring fire." -TMK


wouacGOLD Member
Poi-tato
183 posts
Location: Iceberg 319, Canada


Posted:
I don't perform yet however I am trying to get to a level where I deem myself acceptable to perform at, at which point I hope to get a small troupe together and start, but till then I can only have my dreams of twirling...

It is a mistake to think you can solve any major problems just with potato's.


NOnactivist for HoPper liberation.
1,643 posts
Location: ffidrac


Posted:
I don't perform, at all, not for people anyway, my cats occasionally, in fact i prefer spinning when no-ones looking, in all honesty. Although this thread interests me because i do like to see other people spin, and I was kind of wondering whether anyone did it like full time. Those of you that do, is there enough call for performers? from who? and do you have to travel a lot? feel free not to answer, if you feel these questions are only for the insiders of the business wink ... kind of like the magic circle...!

Aurinko freedom agreement reached 10th Sept 2006

if it makes no sense that's because it's NOn-sense.


bluecatgeek, level 1
5,300 posts
Location: everywhere


Posted:

we get enough stuff to keep six of us employed full time, as well as about 30 sessional performers anything from 1 gig every six months to people who gig most weeks. but only a little of that is fire. we juggle, do character walkabout, stilting, bands djs and drummers so are kind of a hippy entertainment agency wink
loads of travel and funnily enough not much work (proportionally) in the city we work out of...
pele; thats amazing. i can't think of anything happenning like that in this country. also i didn't just mean the tech stuff, i meant some of the discussions and debates about things like this, equipment, safety, etcetc.

true tho, there are loads of diferent ways of furthering yourself, and my way is but one meditate

hugs
R

Holistic Spinner (I hope)


PeleBRONZE Member
the henna lady
6,193 posts
Location: WNY, USA


Posted:
Oooh...Bluecat brings up a huge point!
Location.
I am much like him in the fact that I perform very little in my own city and do frequent "satellite" shows (travel for one night and come home). The mass majority of my shows are away.

Written by: NOn


-Those of you that do, is there enough call for performers?
-from who?
-and do you have to travel a lot?





Whether there is enough call or not, well...it depends. It depends on if you only do fire. If you only spin poi. How you do it. The less you do, the more you limit yourself and the harder it is to get booked.
Who books? Everyone. I have performed a full fire show at a baby shower (not kidding) all the way up to a week of dance and sideshow in Las Vegas. It's a crazy ride getting yourself out there and known, and respected. And even after that who you know, or come to know, helps out alot as well.

Do we travel? Yup. And while it sounds exciting, get to see the world, etc, let me also say that I spent an entire week recently in a city I have never been in, and did not get to do anything touristy at all. I worked the entire time. When I wasn't "on", I was prepping, setting up, repairing, etc. I had some business meetings in there, and then I took off for the next city. The travel is pretty good and fun, and I meet wonderful people that I simply adore..but it is not the glamorous thing people romantacize it to be. Yet, I love it.

Performing for a living is alot of hard work, it does not make you monetarily rich (not when you balance out time, materials, costumes, props), and it is a constant 24/7 passion that effects many other aspects of life. At least for me.

Pele
Higher, higher burning fire...making music like a choir
"Oooh look! A pub!" -exclaimed after recovering from a stupid fall
"And for the decadence of art, nothing beats a roaring fire." -TMK


bluecatgeek, level 1
5,300 posts
Location: everywhere


Posted:
snap. its a bit all-consuming sometimes and you wonder what it is that you are doing when your job takes over your life and you are *meant* to be having fun...

most frstrating of all i find is that many people seem to truly believe i don't do any 'real' work.. grrrrrrrr. if only they knew......

any other takers? i'm sure there are more full and part time performers around...?

hugs
R

Holistic Spinner (I hope)


ado-pGOLD Member
Pirate Ninja
3,882 posts
Location: Galway/Ireland


Posted:
I've been known to do a bit of busking here and there. ubbrollsmile

Love is the law.


NOnactivist for HoPper liberation.
1,643 posts
Location: ffidrac


Posted:
thanks for answers guys, does sound like incredibly hard work but then i guess nothing's every that much of a slog if you're really passionate about it.

I can see that as a performer there are many benefits of having a wide range of possible performances, i suppose also that some types of skills must be more in demand than others? I was thinking mainly in terms of poi, and i guess i figured that not enough people seem to know what they are.. so wouldn't know to go looking for a poi spinner specifically (did that make sense?).

I guess there's always going to be two sorts of people, those you prefer to watch and those who want to try it for themselves... I've always been a doer, which is prob. why i took up poi in the first place, and diabolo, and devil stick, and dance and drama..... yup, definately a doer. So I guess that leaves a lot of people who don't necessarily want to try but want to watch, to be your clients!! biggrin i don't know if i ever really considered it from their angle before umm fantastic stuff folks, keep knocking their socks off with amazing performances! biggrin ubbrollsmile biggrin

Aurinko freedom agreement reached 10th Sept 2006

if it makes no sense that's because it's NOn-sense.


nearly_all_goneSILVER Member
Pooh-Bah
1,626 posts
Location: Southampton, United Kingdom


Posted:
I was going to be doing my first gig as the highlight (except for the fireworks) of bonfire night in my town... hundreds of pounds.. but they won't insure us and we can't afford to. Very annoying. We had our routine set and everything!



So in a few months when we're insured we will - hopefully!

What a wonderful miracle if only we could look through each other's eyes for an instant.
Thoreau


PeleBRONZE Member
the henna lady
6,193 posts
Location: WNY, USA


Posted:
Written by: bluecat



most frstrating of all i find is that many people seem to truly believe i don't do any 'real' work.. grrrrrrrr. if only they knew......






A-freakin-Men! Hallelujah! Holy Crap!

I just went, and am still going through this. I went on tour. Worked my butt of in several places and my homebound lovies kept asking me how my "vacation" was...and they were not joking! It really burns my biscuits. Or when I spend a day at home and the mate comes home going "So I see you didn't do much today." 'Scuse me?? eek

*breathe...breathe...finding happy place*

hug Rob!

Pele
Higher, higher burning fire...making music like a choir
"Oooh look! A pub!" -exclaimed after recovering from a stupid fall
"And for the decadence of art, nothing beats a roaring fire." -TMK


DentrassiGOLD Member
ZORT!
3,045 posts
Location: Brisbane, Australia


Posted:
im kindof in two minds about full time performing.

last year was brilliant for gigs. my crew cracked the uni party scene and performed heaps - most of my income from that year came from performing. on top of uni there was some corporate party gigs and street fairs etc as well. it was hardly enough to get by full time, but for a uni student the cash was great.
i moved away from sydney for 6 months, and when i returned the demand had somewhat dried up. there is a market out there - we do absolutely no advertising and get some business. if any of us was actually motivated enough to do some promotional work we could go reasonable well - but im not really sure its a priority at the moment as i feel my life is travelling down a different direction.
im somewhat happy to keep my firespinning /performing away from being my main work - because then its still fun! im not sure it would have the same buzz if i was doing it contantly.

i tend to get a bit frustrated at times when other crew members dont act professionally for a gig - and being a uni club based crew, it happens a few times. if i was going to persue this further id form a new crew.

what to others think about the entire work/play thing with performing??

"Here kitty kitty...." - Schroedinger.


hadezBRONZE Member
member
44 posts
Location: southampton, United Kingdom


Posted:
Just do part time stuff. Some for uni's and some for clubs.
nearly_all_gone - me and my lot have/are getting personal liability insurance, we've been quoted £30 each. Havent needed it before, but i think we're doing something for the council and really its a good idea just to back you up.

nearly_all_goneSILVER Member
Pooh-Bah
1,626 posts
Location: Southampton, United Kingdom


Posted:
Thanks for that hadez! I've never found a quote that low before. I'll have to do some research!

What a wonderful miracle if only we could look through each other's eyes for an instant.
Thoreau


DurbsBRONZE Member
Classically British
5,689 posts
Location: Epsom, Surrey, England


Posted:
Hadez:

£30 for Public Liabilty Insurance using Fire?!!

Please tell me where! The cheapest I've ever found is £140.



And...

Written by:


Havent needed it before, but i think we're doing something for the council and really its a good idea just to back you up.


It's not a "really good idea" - it's a neccesity if you're perfoming, especially if they're paying you, especially if you're using fire.

Burner of Toast
Spinner of poi
Slacker of enormous magnitude


hadezBRONZE Member
member
44 posts
Location: southampton, United Kingdom


Posted:
Apparently it is £30 not sure who from a mate has all the details, but ill find out for you.

As for the insurance we've never needed it as we've always been covered by the people/place we were performing for, or by our students union. I agree insurance is a neccesity and would never perform without it.

mechBRONZE Member
Carpal \'Tunnel
6,207 posts
Location: "In your ear", United Kingdom


Posted:
durbs, i may have an idea where he is talking about, p if you wnat to knwo more!

Step (el-nombrie)


DurbsBRONZE Member
Classically British
5,689 posts
Location: Epsom, Surrey, England


Posted:
Why not just post it here so all performers can benefit?

Burner of Toast
Spinner of poi
Slacker of enormous magnitude


ben-ja-menGOLD Member
just lost .... evil init
2,474 posts
Location: Adelaide, Australia


Posted:
long long ago in land far far away i used to perform back when i thought speed was cool and burnoffs where just the coolest thing in the world. i really enjoyed the buzz of getting up in front of a crowd and spinning but i didnt enjoy having to practise because of a gig rather than for the fun of it, i also really really reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeally hate drunk hecklers. performing took the fun out of spinning for me i enjoy it sooooooooooooooooo much more now that i just do it just for myself. we also had hassles with dodgy promotery types which put a bit of a dampening spin on it all

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourself, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous and talented? Who are you NOT to be?


musashiistarring Skippy the green llama
1,148 posts
Location: Seattle, WA


Posted:
Sounds like it was time to try performing for a different crowd or hooking up with different events? I was amazed at how different the crowds reaction was from a night club to an arts festival. Biiig difference

Part time here wink

First intention, then enlightenment..
Ars Pyronomica

" Life is programmed. Whether death is programmed or not is yet to be determined."


bigginsSILVER Member
member
165 posts
Location: In Bed, New Zealand


Posted:
have performed in the past and at one poiint it started to look like it might go somewhere but knocked it on the head cos it became to much like "work". the twirling for me is to relax and not to show so i don't anymore.

Wielding a Wooden Spoon


thorFlaming Lesbian
181 posts
Location: Portland, Oregon


Posted:
for those interested in insurance:
https://www.clownsoftheus.com/insurance.htm

i hear they're really good, and for only $185USD (like what, $90 pounds to you bloody brits) it's affordable.

Lights dancing off my skin as chains wrap round it.
Pain is in a little box and I'm so glad I found it.


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