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- Page Eight
Using Torches
This triple-photo was taken at a special performance at the Arizona Renaissance Festival in 1996. The stunt depicted in this series has only been done successfully twice, and both times resulted in some pretty severe lip-burns. You see me holding a total of eleven torches. Ten were connected end-to-end, as described in Tips Page 5, resulting in five shafts with heads on each end, and positioned in my left hand like the spokes of a wheel. The odd torch, in my right hand, was lit and held between my teeth. Each of the ten torch heads was then lit individually from the flaming torch held in my teeth. It is definitely NOT something for anyone but a well-experienced fire-eater to even consider attempting!
This is an extreme version of something I have featured in most of my regular performances for years. Normally, I use five torches for this effect. Four unlit torches are connected and held in the form of a cross. The fifth is lit and held in my teeth, and four are individually lit from one.
There have been some fire-eaters who used a type of spoked wheel. The best description of this prop would be a center hub -or solid wood wheel- which turns freely on a handle. To this wheel are connected four or more torches. The whole thing would resemble the skeleton frame of an umbrella, or something put together with TinkerToysİ! In use, the performer will hold a flame in his/her mouth (whether a lit torch or other source of fire), and spin the wheel over the flame, thereby igniting all the torch heads. Often, but not always, these torches can be removed from the center hub, and extinguished one at a time.
Whether lighting two or more torches from one in your mouth, or using something like the flaming wheel, you are going to be holding the burning torch between your teeth long enough to risk some serious burns. This also tends to build up a substantial amount of heat in your teeth. Is it any wonder that my dentist has found multiple hairline cracks in x-rays of my teeth?
There are other ways to achieve a similar effect (there always are). One other method would be to use a cotton ball in place of the burning torch. Cotton balls are a handy little substitute for a torch, and occasionally they make for some interesting variations.
Be sure you obtain the 100% cotton balls. Some so-called "cosmetic balls" really are not cotton, but synthetic fiber, and like a plastic torch head, these will melt and drip. It may seem ridiculous that cotton balls would be anything BUT cotton, but that's the way the commercial world today is. You have to be aware of what you are purchasing. I suspect that if it were not for the people with hyper-allergenic conditions, we would not even be able to get pure cotton balls.
Like a torch head, cotton balls are dipped in white gas and relieved of excess fuel. The best way to do this is to have a shallow covered container such as an old metal sugar bowl or covered butter dish on your table. cover the bottom of it to no more than 1/4 inch with white gas (naphtha, Coleman fuel, lighter fluid, etc.). Shortly before you are ready to use them, drop 3 or 4 cotton balls into this bowl or dish. Remove them individually and squeeze each over the dish until nothing more drips. Set them on the table (preferably on a saucer or anything that will not absorb the fuel) and cover the dish. Now dry your fingers. Pinch one lightly in your fingertips, and pass it over a source of flame. It will ignite instantly, and the size of the flame will initially startle you. Wave this flaming little ball around until your fingers begin to feel the heat. Just before you cannot take the heat in your fingers any longer, set the ball in the open palm of your other hand. Casually wave this hand gently but deliberately a few times, and when your palm begins to feel hot, pass the ball to the palm of the other hand. You can repeat this back-and-forth passing of the fireball several times. Finally, pick it up with your fingertips, and in one smooth move, tip your head back and place the burning ball on your tongue. Hold it there (and hold your breath) for as long as possible, then bring your tongue back into your mouth, smothering the flame. There is no need here to secretly get rid of the cotton ball while pretending to swallow it. This is not a magic show, and the audience knows the ball is in your mouth. Simply remove the extinguished ball from your tongue gracefully and replace it on the table.
Remember that gas fumes (and therefore flames and heat) rise up. The burning cotton ball, like a torch, will be considerably cooler below than above. Moving it around gently but deliberately fans the flame, making it look more impressive, while at the same time, fanning your fingers or hand as well. This helps to extend the length of time you are able to hold the fire. Once the cotton ball is sitting on your tongue, it is no different from holding a flaming torch on your tongue. With a torch, you can pull it away when the heat becomes unbearable. With a cotton ball, you simply close your mouth over it to cut off the flame.
Some performers will ask for an audience member who smokes to come up and light a cigarette off this flaming ball on the fire-eater's tongue. Others do the same audience-participation stunt holding a torch in their teeth. Either way, the timing must be right. If the person lighting the cigarette should stall or hesitate, you may not be able to hold the fire long enough for them to get the cigarette lit. You need to impress on this person what is going to happen, and that they must do it quickly. This is why it's often better to have your own assistant or partner do it, rather than relying on an audience member.
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