An Unforgettable Fire

16 May 2013 | 1:52 pm | Paul Ransom

"I was jamming with these metal dudes and I threw my hair back into a candle flame and it literally just caught fire. Apparently there was so much product in it that the flames were green. But, y’know, I didn’t stop playing."

There is something of an old-school circus charm about Mare and Finhead. Meeting them in a St Kilda café, it looks like they have all they own with them in a suitcase; and indeed it's not long before they reveal that they do in fact live out of suitcases for months at a time. It's also evident that Finhead is in possession of the world's smallest wig.

The duo are here in Melbourne to compete as Strings On Fire in this week's Gasworks Circus Showdown, where they hope to impress the punters enough with their burning violin act to get voted into Saturday night's final. Yes, that's right, burning violins. Professional violinist Rachele Wildmare (Mare) and stuntman Nellie (Finhead) set fire to their bows and combine their incendiary string duets with acrobatics, tango and a genuine sense of danger. It's an act that's taken them out of suburbia and around the world.

Strange though it seems, the flaming violin idea occurred them both before they met. As 'Mad Strad' Mare recalls it, “I was jamming with these metal dudes and I threw my hair back into a candle flame and it literally just caught fire. Apparently there was so much product in it that the flames were green. But, y'know, I didn't stop playing.”

For Finhead the idea grew out of his work as a circus stunt specialist. Back in the '90s he worked on productions like Xena and over the years developed a repertoire of dangerous looking tricks. “I'm not a violinist by birth,” he admits, “but I had this idea that I could work out how play the violin faster and faster until my arm caught fire.”

When the two finally met Strings On Fire burst into, well, flames. According to Mare “it was combustible” and from that point on the duo developed their combination of mad violining, acro-balance and self-immolation.

For Mare, the show also represents an opportunity to stretch her skills as a musician and arranger. “Some of the pieces are semi-improvisational,” she explains. “Some of them might be based on a tango, for instance. We also use the violins to create sound effects, like cartoon sounds. It's used as comedy device. So, y'know, I get to do all sorts of things I wouldn't get to do if I was sitting in an orchestra, like standing on him instead of a concert platform.”

Picking up the thread, Finhead flashes a grin. “I had to learn the violin to get her do that.”

Although Strings On Fire are here to participate in a circus competition, both Mare and Finhead agree that the circus community is usually more collegiate. “It's a very cooperative scene,” Mare notes. “Y'know, people share training spaces and double up with each other in acts and so on.” However, that will not prevent the nine pre-selected acts in this year's Gasworks Circus Showdown from pulling out the stops to win Saturday's final. Hosted by comedian Nath Valvo, the two semis and the final will pit some of Australia's quirkiest and funniest circus acts in head-to-head, flame-to-flame competition, with the winner to be decided by popular vote. However, one of the most arresting sights for the audience will surely be Finhead's remarkably petite Mohawk wig. Its very circus, very string duet and, quite possibly, very flammable.

WHAT: Gasworks Circus Showdown
WHEN & WHERE: Wednesday 15 to Saturday 18 May, Gasworks Arts Park