Fireflies
What happens when your community becomes part of the show?
The lights come up, the drums begin, and out of the darkness comes a wave of light and sound.
And it is your people out there. Local participants performing right alongside the Spark! team, in stunning handmade costumes, on custom-built illuminated drums. A combined show that is bigger, louder, and belongs to the community that made it happen. That's Fireflies.
What is Fireflies?
Fireflies is a community performance project that takes Spark! to the next level. We work with a group of up to 30 local participants, running intensive drumming and performance workshops over two to three days, fitting everyone in stunning handmade costumes with custom-built illuminated drums, and rehearsing together before performing as one combined ensemble.
Our tutors teach rhythm, choreography, stagecraft, and how to perform as part of an ensemble. Some performance experience can be useful, though it is far from essential. By show time, your Fireflies have become confident, commanding performers in their own right.
How it works
Before the event
We work with you to identify your group of participants, whether that is an existing community group or people you recruit for the project. We take measurements in advance so every costume is ready and waiting.
Workshop days
Three of our tutors arrive with a van full of drums, costumes and lighting equipment. Over two to three days of intensive workshops, your group learns the rhythms, choreography and performance skills they need. Participants arrive nervous and leave buzzing.
Costume fitting and rehearsal
Every participant is fitted with a stunning handmade costume and a custom-built illuminated drum, designed specifically for Fireflies so they look and feel every bit as spectacular as the Spark! team. Final rehearsals bring everyone together as one ensemble.
Show time
For a static show, Spark! builds the performance and then, at the climax, your Fireflies appear and the space fills with light and sound. For a parade, your Fireflies perform alongside Spark! throughout: one spectacular, unified ensemble moving through the streets.
Photo: Finnbarr WebsterStrangers becoming an ensemble
In nature, a tiny number of firefly species, fewer than one in a hundred, can synchronise their flashes with each other. Each individual adjusts its own timing until the whole group pulses together in unison.
That is the idea at the heart of this project: different people coming together and building a new language of communication, through rhythm, through movement, through light.
Why book Fireflies?
Real community participation
Over two to three days, something real happens. People discover things about themselves they didn't expect, grow in confidence, and form bonds with each other and with our team. The performance is the destination, but the journey is what stays with people.
A story worth telling
Local people performing in a spectacular illuminated drumming show is a strong story for your event marketing, for media coverage, and for funding applications. The community engagement element opens doors to arts funding that a straight performance booking cannot.
A transformation that lasts
There is a moment when participants step into the costumes and the lights come on. People who couldn't look you in the eye two days earlier become dynamic, charismatic performers who own the moment. That transformation is what Fireflies is really about.
A bigger, more spectacular show
More performers means more visual impact. A combined Spark! and Fireflies show with more than 35 illuminated drummers is something your audience has never seen before.
What participants say
So many people in the audience made me think how important this was to people. It made me think about what would've happened if I didn't sign up for it.
Tyler
Weymouth
The whole journey and the people we met, in my opinion it has brought us closer and will be an experience that we will never forget.
Neo
Bolton
They helped a lot with my confidence and have sparked an interest in drumming.
Lucy
Weymouth
I have never been prouder! We met the most amazing people who we will miss spending time with.
Stacey
Bolton
I think we all still remember the gasp as the Fireflies came out that first time. We were all in awe of the students who took part.
Dom Kippin
Producer, Activate Performing Arts (Dusk til Dark, Weymouth)
Who can take part?
The people who get the most out of Fireflies are the ones who throw themselves into it. No experience needed, but enthusiasm and commitment are everything. We've worked with performing arts students, community dance groups, youth organisations, and people who had never picked up a drumstick before. Participants need to be aged 15 or over and available for all workshop sessions and the performance. We'll work with you to find the right group for your project.
Photo: J Jackson
Photo: J Jackson
Photo: Finnbarr Webster
Photo: J Jackson
Photo: Finnbarr WebsterBring Fireflies to your community
Every project is shaped around your event, your community and your budget. If you're interested in adding Fireflies to your Spark! booking, or would simply like to find out more, get in touch.
Fireflies has been performed at Bolton's Put Big Light On festival and Dusk til Dark in Weymouth, part of Inside Out Dorset.