Is that real fire?!

Yes.  No trickery, no CGI, just good ol’ physics.

How do you do that [eating fire]?

Very, very carefully and with lots of practice.  Don’t try it at home, kids.

Do you ever burn yourself?

Yes.  It hurts.  Mild scorches and chapped lips are part of being a fire-eater.  I also burn myself cooking bacon a lot.

Will you teach me how to breathe fire?

I do not currently offer classes, workshops, or private lessons in fire arts.  Fire performance – especially eating and breathing – is extremely hazardous to one’s health, and teaching it to others carries a whole host of liability issues that my insurance (and conscience) doesn’t cover.  If you are a performer who is serious about adding fire to your act, and you are willing to travel, you can learn a lot from the fine folks at the Wildfire retreat, held in the Spring and Fall each year.  But remember: when it comes to fire-breathing, you could literally die for your art, so you’d better be pretty damn committed.

Burlesque? Is that, like, stripping?

Yes and no…  A lot of burlesque – what most North Americans recognize as burlesque, anyway – is “Golden Age” or “Classic American” burlesque, which often (though not always) involves a striptease, peeling off layers of clothing and accessories down to another costume, lingerie, or the perennial pasties-and-a-G-string.  The term “burlesque” originally implied a satire, parody or “send-up” of popular literary or theatrical works and conventions, often incorporating risqué ideas and behaviour to provoke the audience.  Whether it involves a striptease or not, today’s burlesque generally showcases this sense of comedy, theatricality and/or performance artistry rather than presenting nudity in a purely erotic context.

If we hire you for a party, will you give the groom/birthday boy/retiree a lap dance?

No.  I do not offer sexual contact or services as part of or in addition to my performances. (I do, however, support the decriminalization of sex work, and the rights of sex workers.)  I will decline/cancel a booking if I feel the client or guests at the event misunderstand this, or if I feel that the event will be unsafe.

Who is this “Haleigh”…?

She is my mild-mannered, non-fire breathing, non-stripping, non-fighting (but definitely tea-drinking) alter-ego.  People often get us confused, because keeping one’s identities distinct is not as easy as the comic books would have you believe.

Got a question?

Ask me here.