Breathe and Eat Fire

You know those movie scenes where the hero takes a swig of whiskey and blows fire onto the bad guys?  I always thought that was really cool, but unrealistic.  I was half right.  Learning to breathe and eat fire is actually quite feasible, although experienced instruction is really a good idea.  Luckily, excellent instruction can be found at the Crucible.  There are two classes, Fearless Fire Eating and Dragon Breath, which take you through the basics of each, to the point where you can safely and reliably amaze your friends.  Each class takes place over two sessions.  The first, you learn how to construct the appropriate equipment (this is the Crucible, after all).  The second session you learn to actually do the deed.  I was pretty impressed with the class — I went from thinking it looked unreal, to doing the unreal.  A lot of credit has to go to Patricia, the experienced and entertaining teacher.  If you want to take it a little further and get some beautiful hand-wrought torches, she can sell you some she makes as her blacksmith alter-ego.

Also, it takes place at the Crucible, which is an awesome space which does awesome things.  I'll be writing about it again.

Website: http://thecrucible.org/classes/adult-classes-by-department/fire-performance
When: Various weekends -- check the schedule on the website.
Where: The Crucible, 1260 7th St, Oakland
How Much: $95 to $175