About this project

April 23, 2011 marks the 6th anniversary of the Temple of Poi Fire Dancing Expo. The creation of this event – selected in 2010 for the 4th consecutive year as one of Bay Area Dance Week’s Cornerstone events – is a tremendous leap in the efforts to legitimize fire dancing as an art form by taking it out of parking lots and putting it on landmark stages like Union Square.

The Expo celebrates safe, legally permitted, public fire dancing performance in honor of National Dance Week, an annual 10-day week of free public dance events in the Bay Area designed to showcase the dynamic diversity and critically acclaimed quality of Bay Area dance. The Bay Area fire dancing community -- one of the largest fire dancing communities in the world -- stands side by side with international fire dancing legends at this event where artists of all skill level are afforded an unprecedented opportunity to showcase their work.

This event is a not-for-profit event created with the intention of:
-Offering more performance opportunities for fire dancers.
-Giving novice artists who might otherwise not have an opportunity to perform in a public setting an opportunity in which they can invite friends and family to see them express their art.
-Increased exposure to the flow of fire art forms by creating a legally permitted public event at a San Francisco landmark location.
-Raise the awareness of fire dancing as a prestigious dance form by holding this event on the second night of National Dance Week.

At it's inception, Temple of Poi (and by extension, Isa Isaacs, the sole proprietor and founder of the school and community) has upheld responsibility for this event -- organizing, advertising, promoting, and funding from beginning to end. As the event has grown, the community has contributed funds to assist in offsetting the cost of permits, fuel, advertising and other expenses. Sadly, in 2010 we were only able to offer $300 in travel stipends and even that was fiscally challenging. Despite the tough economic climate -- or perhaps because of it -- the event was attended by an estimated 2,500-3,000 people -- the largest expo so far and for some artists, the largest audience they have performed in front of -- an amazing opportunity all around!

To ensure the 2011 show is just as impressive, we are running this Kickstarter to cover the cost of the expenses which are outlined in the budget below. Any extra funds, should we get any, will be used for addition travel stipends and/or next year's event. Here is a breakdown of our expenses, dramatically reduced because Union Square/MJM Management is donating the stage to us this year and paying the rental fees (~$3000).

Please note that you may pledge sums with rewards that include private coaching sessions and gift one, some or all of them to other people.