One of the most interesting sessions I’ve done in a long time is this one with Aga dancing with fire in Valencia. The fascination that fire produces in us is difficult to deny, and I am no exception. I also like dancing, and taking photos at night. And also, Aga told me a little about her life and I decided that, of course, these photos had to be accompanied by her story.
Actually, I found Aga dancing with fire in Valencia in the Plaza del Ayuntamiento doing her show. I stopped, asked her permission to take a couple of photos and left her my card in case she wanted to receive them. When she wrote to me we talked about doing some more of her and finally we agreed to do a session in which she also told me something about herself. She is Polish, from the north, specifically, born in Gdynia. She was a dance and swimming teacher before the pandemic and had studied various types of urban and Latin dance, among other things. And she wanted to learn, since her high school years, the whole thing related to poi. But it was not until the pandemic left her without a job -schools and swimming pools were closed- that Ella Aga changed her perspective, she learned the rudiments of what she now masters perfectly and began to live dedicated to dancing with fire.
The situation was tough for everyone. Aga began to live as a backpacker during those years, traveling around Poland and harvesting in France to get a small fund with which to travel around Europe. She has been at it for three months, with her travel companion Flora, who is a singer and guitarist. Together they have already passed through Berlin, Frankfurt, Strasbourg, Lyon, Barcelona, Mallorca and Valencia (where they have made a stop), and they plan to go to Granada shortly.
A different life
It is not a conventional matter at all: Aga lives moving between cities and does her show on the street. She does not have a fixed income and in general, it would seem that she is in a precarious situation. That’s when you think about it. If you see her dance with the fire, you don’t have that feeling. If you look at her movements or the sparkle in her eyes, you find life, passion. There is a part of that radiation that may have come from the fire, but I could feel that glow the first time I saw it. But honestly, I didn’t recognize that feeling until I did the photo shoot with her and she told me her point of view.
Aga had had an interest in fire dancing since high school, but it wasn’t until about five years ago that, following the lights of some circus performers through the trees, she ended up talking to them and getting them to teach her the basics. From then on, she did a lot of training to get good results.
Another issue that draws attention is that in her movements it seems easy to do what he does. Somehow, she flows while handling elements with fire, and it comes off naturally, there are almost no gestures, everything seems easy. Obviously it is not. But the magic of transmitting that fluidity hides many hours of training and practice.
The fact is that the opportunity to take photos of Aga dancing with fire in Valencia has been a very interesting experience for me as a professional photographer , but also, knowing her history and a little about her interests has made me value her artistic abilities more.
If you liked these photos and you need to hire me, you can send me an email to sergi@archerphoto.eu or you can also send a message via Whatsapp, Telegram or Signal to +34 644459753. Oh, and my Instagram is @Archerphoto . And Aga’s, @agu.poi.story .
