The mission of The Playing Mantis is to improve the recognizability and accessibility of fire dancing to the general public. We plan to do this through direct exposure to performances as well as providing access to instruction. We look forward to working with fire dancers who have developed a broad variety of styles and showcasing the diversity inherent in this unique art.
We further wish to support the advancement of fire dancing as an art form by providing access to quality props. We wish to provide not only well-constructed and reliable versions of the most commonly used tools, but also to encourage innovation and the development of new props by the fire dancing community.

Mantis started dancing with poi in the spring of 2001, in an area without other spinners.  Without the wealth of online learning resources available today, he was self-taught for 4 years before connecting with other fire dancers up and down the east coast.  This caused him to stretch a narrow set of tricks as much as possible, developing an excellent sense of body mechanics and a unique style.
Partly due to the lack of places he could learn more advanced poi, Mantis began cross-training with a variety of props to discover new types of movement.  By taking techniques from the martial arts, juggling, and other forms of object manipulation, he found he could stretch his abilities in new ways.  A background in puppetry also influenced this process, as it encouraged Mantis to search for the movement potential in unconventional props and integrate these into his style.
Because of this he has been developing new tools and props since the beginning of his training, often designing them from scratch.  Inspired by the growth of fire dancing over the past several years, he is pleased to be able to offer his experience to help further the art.

SnapDragon began firedancing in 2006 after watching other fire performers outside of an art gallery.  An experienced gymnast, she was excited to learn a new skill to expand her performances.  The local firedancing community was happy to help her, and she picked up poi and staff quickly.  Since then she has worked to integrate acrobatics into her firedancing and infuse even more energy into her performances.
As her abilities have improved, SnapDragon has begun experimenting with unconventional props, such as the fire jump rope.  An incredibly physically demanding prop, the jump rope appeals to SnapDragon personally due to her background in bodybuilding.  As a certified personal trainer and gymnastics coach, she is very interested in the fitness potential inherent in many skill toys.  She is excited to share her knowledge and expertise with students and audiences alike.

Smokey’s drive for knowledge and adventure are what drew him into the world of poi. With barely an introduction, Mantis handed him a pair of poi with only the instructions, “Play”. That hour long exposure in 2006 began a long journey of training, the first year of which was endured in solitude. He dabbled with technique and fire until Mantis popped back onto the radar and better instruction became available once again. Performing came naturally to Smokey as he has been tap dancing & performing since childhood. Even in the beginning of his fire dancing journey he enjoyed the performance aspect and the fun of exposing the art form to those who have never seen it before.

Smokey’s engineering background influences his technical yet fluid style of fire dancing. It doesn’t matter what prop is in sight, he naturally adapts and uses it to challenge his skill. Smokey usually performs with Poi and Double Staves, but when conditions are right (and there is enough space) he also ooooh’s and aaaaaah’s crowds with the Fire Rope Dart. You’ll sometimes see him with a single staff and when you’re lucky you might catch him with fans.

Passion for expressing new concepts through art and performance drive Smokey to continually further and challenge himself creatively. Once mastering his current artistic obsession he’ll always have that inspiration and dive right into the next project.

Omni has been a dancer, strongly focused on ballet, since the beginning of her time. What lead her to fire dancing was her instinctual draw to the performing arts and watching Smokey perform over the years. She loved to watch and record Smokey’s gigs, then edit fire performance videos for him. One day it just hit her; “Wait, I can do this too!” And there it began.

Omni has been fire dancing since early 2009 and dedicated herself to her passion for the art form and performance. Poi were just the beginning, soon Fire Fans became another headlining prop of Omni’s performances. She continues branching out with new props to test the depths of her dexterity.

At the same time she wraps herself in all aspects of her creativity; graphic, video, fashion, interior design, photography, performance and anything and everything involving the arts. Says Omni: “I love having my mind absolutely blown by the creativity that is out there, I want to be a part of it, and I want to share it with everyone.”