The Fire Masters (De Vuurmeesters) emerged in Ghent in the spring of 2008, when a group of 11 friends decided to experiment with fire installations. This originated in the mother organization vzw Cirque del Mundo, which had created fire shows for years but lacked the installations to back them up. It seemed that whatever Belgium had to offer in terms of atmosphere creation with fire was mostly very small and amateuristic.
The artists of The Fire Masters have a long and diverse history. Some already had extensive experience with fire shows, street performance, organizing workshops on pyrotechnics, whilst others had more experience with art projects, painting, welding, stage building, glassblowing or gas installations. In the centralized workshop and training space of vzw Cirque del Mundo the enthused new group started working out the new idea of atmosphere creation with fire and soon enough the first artistic fire installations had been built. At the end of the summer, these were displayed for the first time on the closing night of Parkkaffee. During the second performance it became clear that the new group had started living its own life within Cirque del Mundo and that the new production stood on itself: The Fire Masters, fire on scene.
It wasn't until the third public performance the Winged City, however, that the concept would get its final image. By working with an artistic director, Wim Simons, a special soundscape (by Jan van Reeth) and in-depth stage performance, the creation of the 'Fire Village' was a fact. In this village, fire and fire installations are the main characters which about ten to twelve 'Fire Masters' serve, but which they also maintain, guard and bring to life.
Since The Winged City, The Fire Masters have evolved enormously, both on the artistic as the professional level. Independently of the 'classic' Fire Village scenario, the group has developed a completely new concept: the Fire Parade. On top of that, the group played a number of coproductions and one-offs, during which the limits of fire performance where explored.
On top of that, characters, play and safety have thoroughly evolved and a large number of new fire installations have been created – eg. the eight meter high fire marble roller coaster – thanks to which the group can now rely on an extensive choice of different acts and fire machines that barely fit into the back of a 10-ton truck.
The magical essence of The Fire Masters is not only the estranging ambiance in the fire village, but also the drive with which the group continues to build and create. Both on scene, in the workshop as behind the computer, the passion burns. Every Fire Master contributes to versatility and quality, thanks to which the company has amply proven that she is an experienced ensemble which can adapt to as good as any setting: market squares, beaches, ruins and fortresses in the most diverse weather conditions.