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Poi (juggling)
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Poi is a form of juggling or object manipulation employing a ball suspended from a length of rope which is held in hand and swung in circular patterns, comparable to club-twirling. Poi spinning originated with the Maori people of New Zealand (the word poi means "ball" in Maori) as a means of promoting increased flexibility, strength, and coordination -in particular, the dexterity of the wrist- and as an exercise of movements central to the use of hand weapons, including the patu, mere, and kotiate.
In Maori culture, the discipline of poi evolved into a traditional performance art practiced mostly by women.
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Encyclopedia
Poi is a form of juggling or object manipulation employing a ball suspended from a length of rope which is held in hand and swung in circular patterns, comparable to club-twirling. Poi spinning originated with the Maori people of New Zealand (the word poi means "ball" in Maori) as a means of promoting increased flexibility, strength, and coordination -in particular, the dexterity of the wrist- and as an exercise of movements central to the use of hand weapons, including the patu, mere, and kotiate.
In Maori culture, the discipline of poi evolved into a traditional performance art practiced mostly by women. This art includes storytelling and singing choreographed to poi routines, and developed in conjunction with others disciplines -such as waiata a ringa, haka and titi torea- included in kapa haka performances. Contemporary poi has built upon the Maori discipline and is now a combination of spinning arts from around the world.
Modern poi
Poi spinning has grown beyond the scope of the originating Maori culture, and is enjoyed worldwide as a hobby, exercise, or performance art. Poi dancers may be found performing alongside jugglers, staff spinners, and other similar performers.
Practice poi
Initiates often first employ a simple pair of practice poi: these are usually constructed from something soft, in order to lessen the effect of impact- rolled up socks, bean bags or small soft toys, plastic grocery bags filled with crumpled tissue paper or synthetic stuffing. Typically, poi spinners start out with simple moves, gradually learning to involve more complexity. Many find it helpful to practice spinning their poi to music in order to keep a smooth cadence or rhythm.
Performance poi
Performers often employ brightly colored, contrasting poi to distinguish their performance, enhance aesthetic, and emphasize pattern; tails and streamers attached to the poi further these aims.
Glow poi/ Glowsticking
Poi performance may be undertaken in darkness to dramatic effect when poi include a light source -such as UV-sensitive materials, LED lights, or chemical glow sticks. Glowstringing, similar to poi, uses glowsticks swung from shoelaces. Glowstringing is popular at festivals and raves.
Meteor
Meteors were cross adopted both from poi and from the Chinese martial weapon, the meteor hammer. The meteor is often constructed like, or from, poi with an additional short chain, rope, or bar in the center. This form allows for most poi skills to translate, plus some staff, rope dart and chain whip skills as well.
Fire poi
The first known fire poi shows were part of private men's rituals in Hawaii. Traditional knife spinning was modified to include fire in 1946, then known as fire knife. The first public appearance of these rituals started around 1959, and became a tourist attraction by the early 1960s.
Fire poi are constructed from chain, with kevlar blend wicks, sometimes also stuffed on the inside with more absorbing non-melting material such as cotton, that can be soaked in fuel and set on fire. Fuels used include paraffin, kerosene, naphtha (also called "white gas") or alcohol. Each geographic and social cluster of performers has it's preferred fuel. Typically these decisions are based more on legality and availability than on showmanship. Though each fuel has it's strengths and weaknesses, proponents of any given fuel tend to be fiercely faithful to their particular type.
Many kinds of fire poi are available, the simplest utilizing two wicks. The fire wicks are generally one of three varieties: a cylindrical wrap, cathedral stack (square) or a monkey fist knot tied with kevlar blend rope. Some performers like to pick and choose their wicks, according to the performance they intend to give - controlling their burn time and the brightness of the flames. Other variations of fire poi include multiple wicks, snakes (a length of rope, or long kevlar/hybrid wick that can produce a long flame), Toi (torches with a short poi chain and grip), hollow wicks (providing short lived but very bright flame), and sculpted wicks for specific theme shapes.
Poi tricks
Poi has become known among a few communities. As with many subculture sports and pastimes, poi spinners often spend hours mastering their tricks.
Some popular poi tricks include: reels, weaves, fountains, crossers, windmills, butterflies, stalls, and wraps.
Split time and split direction moves are possible, and some of the more difficult moves require a considerable amount of manual dexterity, coordination and forearm strength to accomplish.
There are several basic classes of trick. The two poi are usually spun in parallel planes, and can be spun in the same direction (weaves) or opposite directions (butterflies). Moves such as stalls and wraps can change direction of one (or both poi) to change between these two classes.
Weaves
Weaves are a class of trick based around the "basic weave". Considered by many poi swingers to be one of the staple moves, the basic (two-beat) weave is often one of the first tricks learned. The basic weave is called "two-beat" because each poi spins two times in a cycle: once on each side of the body. Reverse weaves, behind the back weaves, and 1 1/2-beat, 3-beat, 4-beat, 5-beat, 7-beat, 9-beat, 12-beat and other weaves are also possible.
Butterflies
The butterfly is a simple trick in which the hands are held close together in front of the spinner and the poi spin in opposite directions flat to the spinner, so that the poi cross at the top and bottom of their circles. This move can be done behind the head, behind the back and extended to any number of moves; there are as many variations on the butterfly possible as there are for the weave, including polyrhythms and hybrids. Some skilled performers perform this with 4 poi (two in each hand) to execute a double butterfly, a move also executed with meteor. A few practitioners do this with 6 poi balls so that a third one-footed butterfly can be performed with the other foot. However, the majority of poi performers consider such a trick to have no real use, as there's no real way for the performer to use such a thing as part of a dance whilst keeping the fluidity of movement intact.
Wraps
A wrap is a move where one or both poi are wrapped around something, most typically part of the body, to change the path or direction of spin. There are two types of wrap: basic or recoil wraps wrap around the target and then bounce off, so that the poi ends up spinning in the opposite direction to which it started from; and thru-wraps which wrap around a moving body part, so that the direction stays the same but the poi changes the path it is travelling along. Typical targets for a wrap are the arms and legs, although any body part is suitable - one of the more dangerous places to perform wraps is around the neck. Double-neck thru-wraps are perhaps the most dangerous move that can be done with fire poi, due to the risk of the poi tangling.
Flowers
Flowers are a visually impressive set of moves in which the poi spinner fully extends their arms and moves them in circles around the body while spinning the poi. When done in time this gives rise to a series of loops around a large circle, which look like the petals of a flower when viewed from the side. Flowers are sometimes called compound circles.
Further tricks
Isolations refer to a class of moves where the poi handle is also spun in a circle. "Perfect" isolation occurs when the poi handle and poi are moving in the same circle, and can usually create distinctive synchronised moves (e.g. cranks). Hyperloops are where the poi ropes becomes entangled (twisted up) and then untangled, keeping the ends spinning the entire time. Advanced spinners are also able to spin their moves in places such as behind the back and under the leg.
Poi construction
Many poi spinners, amateur and professional alike, prefer to create their own poi. A simple pair of practice poi require little more than a pair of socks and a couple of tennis balls. More impressive poi can be made from a multitude of different materials. Kite cords are lightweight and readily available. Chain is a more durable alternative to regular cord. Ball chains can rotate freely so as to prevent tangling, and metal cables can make for extremely fast poi. Long socks can also be used with a weight in one end and a knot in the other. More advanced spinners may add a weight to the handle, in order to improve their ability to perform advanced techniques (such as throws and contact poi).
Kevlar blend wicks and a variety of poi heads can be bought either from juggling shops or online, and a number of different kinds of hand grip are available too. This way a performer can customise their poi to suit their own personal preference.
Safety
Depending on their construction, poi can strike the user (or bystanders) with enough force to cause bruising or minor injury. Metal parts on fire poi have a high heat transfer coefficient and may burn on contact; the wick has a lower coefficient and is less likely to cause burns directly -but can spray or spread fuel. Costumes from non-flammable materials, such as leather, or flammable cotton are preferred when employing fire poi; synthetic fibers tend to melt when burned, resulting in severe burns to the wearer.
Fire poi use requires a safety regime to address the risks of setting fire to the user, bystanders, or the surroundings. Typical elements of such a regimen include a sober, rested, and alert spotter who has access to a ABC Dry Chemical fire extinguisher for putting out material and fuel fires (water-based extinguishers spread oil fires), a damp towel or woolen/duvetyne fire retardant blanket (for extinguishing burning clothes and fire toys), a bucket of water (for the eventuality of out of control fires), and plastic wrap (for protecting burns that require hospitalisation). A metal container (located away from the performance area) that can quickly be sealed (so as to be airtight) is used as a fuel dump; with the lid in place, fuel fires may be extinguished. Paint cans are commonly used for this purpose.
See also
Further reading
- Shennan, Jennifer & McLean, Mervyn (September 1979). . Ethnomusicology 23 (3), pp. 493–499.
- Youngerman, Suzanne (January 1974). . Ethnomusicology 18 (1), pp. 75–100.
External links
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- Traditional Maori poi performance
- - a free online research journal that discusses Maori music and related performing
- Worldwide fire dancing and performing community with tutorials and safety articles.
- Free poi lessons in a user friendly format, one is an in depth study, one is a real time view.
- Free on-line videos demonstrating the basic planes of movement with written instructions.
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