Last year I decided to travel around Southeast Asia to hike, forget about work and relax. With a group of friends we did Thailand, Cambodia and Laos, then we decided to come here for new year. It was thanks to Phanganist.com because when I was planning the travel I was searching and accidently found Phanganist, I pressed on ‘videos’ and watched the new years eve video and saw all the craziness and relaxing so I thought ‘yes!’, I wanted to celebrate the 2015 new year on Koh Phangan.
We enjoyed new year and stayed for the whole month. Me and the group were due to fly back to the Ukraine after one month, but again thanks to Phanganist, I found a lot of parties. I had brought a few of my fire instruments with me to perform on the beach with friends. So I connected with these parties and introduced myself as a fire dancer. My first party was Jungle Experience, after Jungle I sat in my bungalow thinking about what I have to do. I thought ‘Why do I have to go home? I can stay! I can work in jungle, perform and earn enough money to live here’. So, I called the flight company and cancelled my ticket. My friends were looking at me with wide eyes saying ‘Phangan has taken you!’. In Kiev I was working as a journalist, had a good job, a nice apartment but it was nothing compared with Koh Phangan, life is amazing and awesome here!
So what got you interested in fire performance?
I started to do this art a long time ago, about eight years ago. At that time it was something new, I don’t know about other places but in Ukraine and Russia it was a new art. When you did it on the street in Kiev it was something unusual, everyone would take pictures. It was my hobby, I had a normal job working with the biggest TV channels in Ukraine.
I accidentally went to a hippy festival in Crimea, it was absolutely an accident as I would never usually go to a hippy festival!
Whilst there I met some guys doing fire, it was really attractive to me, how they performed and looked. I wanted to do something like this so we got together and started to do fire theater, performing at festivals and parties. It gives you the ability to travel and cover your expenses for the travel, you meet interesting people and when everyone is happy, you are happy. I became a permanent performer at Ukraine festivals every summer.
Tell us what is special about your performance?
I do not just only do a simple fire show but put in some elements of dance and artistic playing. I’m an actor, so when I perform fire I have a role of ‘mad fire destroyer’ and use elements of ethnic dances.
I go back to Ukraine for summer time and will bring some mad crazy instruments that I’ve never seen in Thailand, not your usual poi or sticks. I try to make my show something special and try to make some stage presence of myself, and people like it. When I perform in parties people ask questions, take my contact details, invite me to events or just say good words which is very pleasant for me. It is great when your job makes people smile, it makes you smile too. I think it’s a dream for many people, to have fun and make money whilst having fun. Sometimes I’m sitting in my bungalow thinking how happy I am.
There are a lot of fire performers coming through Phangan, have you or would you like to do any collaborations?
For the last few years I have done my own fire practice, I’m not joining teams, I am just having my personal show and being successful with it.
I collaborate with other performers for events and when I see that it will look beautiful then for sure we will work together but it has to look harmonious.
Why do you think Koh Phangan attracts such creative folk?
I think Phangan is a special place, it really is magic island, it’s true! I see that!
I converse with a lot of people who have been living here for a long time and everyone tells me Koh Phangan changed their life. Phangan is like a living creature, you can speak and feel with him, you can ask, and if you ask with an open mind and heart, he will make your wish come true, you can fall in love here, find a job here, it can be like a new religion.
It really is a way of life and a way of thinking. If you come to the island and are desperate and don’t know what to do you can always find activities and ‘find yourself’ here. You can look at your skills and find something you can use here. The island is very appreciative of artistic skills, if you have artistic skills you can find what to do. Also I know people who couldn’t paint or sing etc but now they have found it here and are creating things! But only those who do it with an open heart and clean mind, if inside your heart you feel anger etc then you may find trouble here, accidents, health, some people say it’s karma.
I accept the island with all its mosquitoes and bike accidents and my life has changed. I started getting lots of performing work, found a good house and success started following me when I changed something in my mind.
My friends from Ukraine think that life on an island is boring, that you just see coconut trees everyday but my life is much more active. I was in Bangkok working as a model and acting but it was better to move here. Life on the island is very active, you find activities to do, I have many plans for the future!
What parties do you perform at?
I perform for all the biggest parties, also for muay thai boxing where before the main event I come into the ring to perform and also private parties and weddings.
What has been a special performance for you?
My first at Jungle Experience, that was special and I want to say a few words about them as they really opened the road for my
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