The Real X-Men...& X-Women, Super-Natural Talent, Skill, & Audacity, AMC'S "Freakshow" & The Dancing Fire

By Laura Medina

Left, AMC's "Freakshow". Right, "The Dancing Fire"

Whenever this scribe watches the "X-Men" movie series, this scribe is constantly reminded it is God-given talent that makes these individuals special.  It is also this talent that also makes these talented people, "freaks" in average, conventional society where the majority don't have the talent, much less skill.

General society puts these people down out of lack of understanding or jealousy due to the lack of talent and skill...and audacity.

In these past two months, this scribe had encounter two remarkable troupes or in AMC's case, "Freakshow," a family, like the X-Men.  A month before at the L.A. Travel Magazine Spring Issue Launch party ("Time to Hit the Road, Check Out LA Travel Magazine's Launch Party.",http://luxurist.blogspot.com/2014/05/time-to-hit-road-check-out-la-travel.html), up sprung The Dancing Fire, a stunt troupe.

If Professor Charles Francis Xavier is the father figure and coach of The X-Men in fiction then, Todd Ray of AMC's "Freakshow" is close to the real-life version.

This ex-College of Charleston student, this man knows talent when he sees it.

He rose up the ranks of hip-hop and rock, producing and mixing hits and comebacks for Santana's "SuperNatural,"   Jack Johnson, Nas, Mick Jagger, House of Pain, The Beastie Boys, G. Love & Special Sauce, Cypress Hill, Santana, 311, Audioslave, Artifacts, and Ozomatli.  He helped Ozomatli break out in the music scene and made them Latin-Hip Hop-Rock stand-bearers that they are today.

Then, he got burnt out and lost that fire.

Once he got everything the music cred, the social establishment, and the family with a wife and two kids, a boy and a girl, Todd decided to reach back to what got him into the entertainment, people with deformities or disabilities or handicapped.  Yes, Todd Ray's childhood was the last era when it was social acceptable to shun the misfits into the circus' in-politically correct "sideshows."  What repels most people is what attracts Todd and making do with their limitations is what made him admire these "freaks."

A man with a bone disease that paralyzes his limbs, who had to make do with rolling cigarettes with tongue and mouth amazes the young, impressible Todd Ray in Lancaster, South Carolina.  This sideshow performer told this young, able-bodied boy that if he can apply his same energy and focus with his healthy body, he can achieve anything.

From that, Todd Ray told his wife, that he's gonna quit the music business and start his very own old-fashion freakshow on the Venice Beachwalk.  She said he was crazy.

www.amctv.com/shows/freakshow,  AMC Facebook, Freakshow Facebook and @FreakshowAMC.   

He made sure his kids know the value of hard work from building a business from scratch.  His "Freakshow" is going to be a family business.

His son, Phoenix, works as his assistant, especially on the popular and profitable weekends.

His daughter, Asia Ray, dove right into it,  training herself on several stunt disciplines.  Dad Todd even got her training early.  Whenever she wants to sun-bathe, he built her a bed of nails for her train on while tanning then he had her tan on a bed of nails as the family's attraction on the Venice Boardwalk.

Unlike most teen girls her age, she would practice sword-swallowing by defying the automatic gag relax by easing unfurled wire coat hangers down her esophagus.  

Warning***Mind you all readers, just because this scribe is describing the training techniques of these talented and bold performers doesn't mean anyone can death-defying stunts for fun.  According to Natalia of "The Dancing Fire," it takes a certain personality with talent and focus to undergo the training to become a stunt performer.***

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2Xf8a7ggcQ and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KqMU4EhJlY8

Asia moved onto mastering sword-swallowing, fire-eating, and being the only female to withstand bolts from an electric chair.

Even as the "Rubber Girl," (this is the most gentle of her skills because it's similar to advanced yogis), Asia plainly stated it's all about conditioning your joints and ligaments.

She is skilled enough that she and dad are proud enough to claim she made a man peed his pants when Asia performs her stunts.  

You don't have to be born or married into Todd Ray's "Freakshow."  Remember, he's a talent-spotter/manager.  He knows it when he sees it.

He discovered The Morgue (actually, The Morgue is a very polite gentleman) when he was a mere street performer being hustled by the cops.  At that time, Todd politely told the young gentleman, he didn't a space for him at that time but he does now.

Interesting, that The Morgue and Asia Ray, being in the same age group, represent the latest and newest generation of stunt performers.

Todd was really impressed that The Morgue took his time honing his skills as a traveling street performer. 

There is a real reason why The Morgue is named, "The Morgue."  Anyone else doing the exact same stunt work would die and end up in the morgue.  "The Morgue" is only person to live and perform these stunts many times over.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KqMU4EhJlY8

Sword-swallowing along side Asia Ray is the tamest of skills.  Oh by the way, whenever these performers swallow a sword, the sword is one-eighth away from the heart.  Not for the faint of heart...pun intended seriously...

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KqMU4EhJlY8

The Morgue has several death-defying specialities that only he can do.  He injured himself mastering this peculiar craft, mouth-stretching with meat hooks.  He is the only person who does this..."And yes, this does hurt."  This involves manipulating and stretching the cartilage.  Again, not for idiots.

Here's another talent not for amateurs and idiots but only the most dedicated and the boldest and bravest can do what The Morgue does...drilling holes into his nose and still live to tell and describe the tale.  Again, not for the conventional "Bell Curve."

What the majority of normal society call "freaks" are what Malcolm Gladwell call the tail ends of "Outliers," exceptional people who master a craft, a discipline then push it to beyond the limits.  Again, not of the frivolous or the faint of the heart or the half-hearted.

In lieu of yesterday's Father's Day, this scribe's dad said this, "Go all the way or don't do it at all."

If you want to watch more of these death-defying stunts and performance while watching The Rays being a family, abet, a real-life versions of "The Munsters" or "The Adams Family," catch them on AMC every Tuesday at Midnight or at 11pm Central Time, http://www.amctv.com/shows/freakshow.

 http://www.thedancingfire.com/firedancers.html

AMC's and Todd Ray's "Freakshow" isn't the only show in town.

The equally fierce and fiery "The Dancing Fire" troupe of fire-eater/breathers/dancers, aerialists, acrobats, and glow dancers literally had this scribe dropped her jaw watching them twirl LED displays with logos and designs as glow dancers at L.A. Travel Magazine's Spring Issue launch party.  They were thoughtful enough to "set the place on fire" without actually setting the Ebano's Crossing Bar on fire.

Natalia, performer and spokeperson and manager, said she can company logos and images in their LED displays if safety issues about fire are a concern in an enclosed environment.  Ah, brave and brainy, this scribe's type of lady.

Natalia went into depth describing what it takes to be a Dancing Fire, much as a specialized stunt performer such as Asia Ray, and some extent, like The Morgue.

Basically, it's mastering the fundamentals such as rudimentary hula-hooping, baton-twirling or string-twirling, belly-dancing, acrobats, circus-training, and aerialists. 

Natalia, "If they can't master that (the basics), how the hell they're gonna perform the more advance stuff, such as working with fire."

She went deeper and more straight-up, learning the basics weans and filters the candidates out.  They're the ones who don't have patience to learn and master the craft.  They're the drop-outs, "Gotta love it for you to do it."

Every Dancing Fire wanna-be starts out learning the props without the fire, hula-hooping sans fire or LED imagery.  You learn to spin and coordinate your body.

Natalia said it takes a certain type of personality to be a fire-eater/acrobat/performer.  "Fire isn't for everyone."

Once mastering the basics, the filtered out candidates can move onto more advanced skills such as fire-eating/breathing, hula-hooping with fire, and the advanced technology of LED Glow Dancers.  "We'll  put the fire on later."

If you're comfortable with hula-hooping with fire and got your Polynesian/Tahatian/Belly-Dancing dance moves on with fire and twirling customized LED designs for upscale corporate parties like Google, then you're an highly in-demand Dancing Fire to make journalists' drop their jaws.

You don't have to under-go death-defying do to gain the tight abs of a Dancing Fire.  For the softies, they offer FITNESS HOOP DANCE and FITNESS HOOP DANCE WORKSHOPS, http://www.thedancingfire.com/fitnesshoop.html.

Their fitness hoops are different from childhood of yore.  They are weighted to tone and sculpture while having fun and being silly all at once.  It is important to have a hula hoop customized to your height, because a too small or too large hoop will affect your workout and your hooping. They will make sure you have the right hoop for you. You also get to choose your own colors for your hoop, because your fitness tools and dance props should be what you want. Our professional dancers and hoop artists will make sure your workout is never dull- we add belly dance to our hooping class to get you in on the hottest dance moves. If you have any questions about hooping, please email them anytime.

A lot of their Hoop Dance private workshops take place in Runyon Canyon in Hollywood, CA - if you wish to have your hoop dance workshop in this beautiful park location. 

Again, as a reminder, stunt performers such as "Freakshow" and The Dancing Fire are dedicated, highly skilled and talented performers who love their craft seriously.  Don't perform or copy these stunts on your own.  Taking these stunts casually will kill you.   If you are intrigued and want to learn more, please visit and talk to Todd and Asia Ray and the Freakshow troupe and The Dancing Fire to see if you have what it takes to learn the BASICS!