Dancing with fire: St. Pete school teaches the ‘hottest’ dance moves
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Social media proves there’s no shortage of hot dance moves around, but there’s a place in St. Petersburg where you can learn and practice the hottest old-school dance moves of them all.
"Fire dancing is a beautiful art form," said Abby Lee, Hoola Monsters creator and long-time fire performance artist. "It’s definitely an adrenaline rush."
Lee says a lot of people are drawn to the flame because it’s an ancient practice that’s been around for many years. However, she stresses that people who want to dance with fire need to learn how to do it in a safe and effective manner.
"The last thing we want people to do is to grab a prop, run into their backyard and light it up," she explained. "You need to know about proper fueling and safety, which safety equipment to use in which circumstance."
Lee teaches two-hour courses in fire dancing that goes over safety, fuel options and technique.
"There’s a life to the flame. Each prop burns at a different rate depending on which prop it is and how big the wicks are. It sort of takes on a life of its own, so in order to perform with fire, you need to have a symbiotic relationship with the fire and that’s really a beautiful thing," she shared.
Lee says anyone wanting to learn to dance with fire, should learn to dance with the props without flames first. She says she got into the art form because she loved hula-hooping and wanted to take it to the next level, which was to add fire.
Fire dancing is more than just a performance, according to Lee. She says there is a community of fire dancers that come together and support each other.
Fire Dance School is hosting their next outdoor event Sunday, March 7 in St. Petersburg at Nova 535.
Visit hoolamonsters.com for more information about the classes.
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