About Me
Kate Fuego is a fire artist deep in the heart of Texas. She has been experimenting with flow ever since earning the nickname Katie Hula Hoop at field day in elementary school and started performing professionally with fire in 2005.
Since the pandemic Kate has been an official artist alongside musicians in SXSW, UTOPiAfest, Astronox and Old Settlers Festival. She has also been featured as a guest dancer with Purple Bee and College of Hip Hop Knowledge in Austin, with PuraFire in the US Virgin Islands, and captained the Ignite Fire Keepers in 2022 and Phoenix Starship in 2025 in the fire conclave at Burning Man. She also teaches workshops on music theory and improvisation and loves creating with all genres of artists.
Kate also has a hilariously impressive LinkedIn page and is using her professional skills to Keep Austin Weird.
Workshops
Kate teaches people of all ages and ability levels how to apply music theory principles to the dance floor
Recommended Reading: Art of Is by Stephen Nachmanovitch
My Fire Story
Everyone always asks: “How did you get into fire dancing?”
It’s a valid question. I wasn’t embedded in Polynesian culture growing up in suburban New Jersey. I always loved dance and cheer but didn't know anything like this existed.
The first time I saw a fire poi dancer, I was enchanted. Poi is an art with deep roots originating from the Maori of New Zealand and is practiced all around the world. I had no agenda about showing any talent or becoming skilled, all I knew was that I wanted to try.
I found my first teacher in 2004. Our class met twice a week for six weeks covering poi fundamentals and fire safety. My teacher also loved flowing around to all types and styles of music. "Moving Right Along" from The Muppet Movie and the Red Hot Chili Peppers cover of Stevie Wonder's "Higher Ground" were on the playlist every time our class met.
For our last session, those of us who wanted to try fire took turns cheering each other on. What I remember most from my first time was the sound of the swooshing of the flames. Fire is unexpectedly loud! But I loved it so much and wanted to keep going.
Fire has kept me going through the majority of my adult years and has led me to many new forms of creative expression. It's my hope that sharing this inspires you to try something that you're drawn to because it's never too late to try something new.
