Suffolk Punch began with a ‘BANG’, quite literally, on Thursday night, with the explosive opening ceremony. All three sub-camps gathered in the arena to celebrate the start of what will be an amazing event.
As the participants seated themselves, many were chanting, singing, and shouting, ready to be amazed. And boy, were they amazed.
The ceremony began with Event Co-Ordinator, Will Dowe, taking to the stage to address the participants and thank them for coming, before handing over to Leigh Foster and Dan Jackson who have been responsible for organising all the incredible activities taking place at Punch. They managed to hype the crowd up even more, which was an impressive feat, encouraging them to shout and cheer for the introduction of the main act, Andos from Hafla Entertainment.
Andos put on an impressive display of tricks and dancing with fire. The crowd went wild as he juggled blazing rods and cracked burning whips which exploded with a ‘BANG’, making the crowd jump. Further on in the performance, there was even a flamethrower, which was used to light a giant star that Andos put around his waist!
Matthew, from 1st Earsham, Earth, said “the fire tricks were really cool”, he told us he has “never seen anything like it”. This is Matthew’s first ever time camping and what a way to kick it off!
Please remember that this performance was done by a trained professional who has had years of training and the correct equipment and support, including firefighting staff on scene in the event of an incident. This should never be tried at home or at a Scout setting without the appropriate precautions in place.
You can watch the opening ceremony performance here: