![Converted Arts Fire Dancers show their skills in the combination of the Martial Arts [Arnis] into a fantastic fire dance. (Carla N. Cañet)](http://media.assettype.com/sunstar%2Fimport%2Fuploads%2Fimages%2F2022%2F08%2F15%2F375115.jpg?w=480&auto=format%2Ccompress&fit=max)
BROTHERS Eugenio and Johnny Sollano, Regin, and their friend Jerico Dela Cruz have integrated their Arnis skills into fire dancing.
This creates a fantastic visual effect from the multitude of fires contrasted by the darkness of the night and heated up by the danceability of the music accompaniment.
Regin said they were all martial artists who were just innovative in executing those skills in fire dancing.
They named themselves the "Converted Arts Fire Dancers" because they converted their Arnis skills into fire dancing steps.
Now mainstay entertainers at the Palawud restaurant in Barangay Banago in Bacolod City, the trio started to show interest in fire dancing in 2014.
"We were practicing at the Provincial Capitol and Lagoon Park, and somebody asked us if we could perform at a birthday party and that kicked off our fire dance enthusiasm," Regin recalled.
They performed free of charge when they were starting out.
Regin competed in the Bangon Talintadong Pinoy on TV 5, calling himself "Santelmo."
In September 2020, at the height of the pandemic, he joined the TV show because he wanted to earn extra income for his education.
Furthermore, he started learning Martial Arts when he was first year of high school and earned several medals for his victorious competitions.
He also trained sports-minded students like him in Bacolod City and Negros Occidental schools.
He imparted to them the skills to promote the value of sportsmanship and self-defense.
The pandemic has taught us to continue honing our skills to be more practical, despite the hindrances caused to the entertainment and tourism industries.
They have performed in Palawud for eight years, and people showed great interest when they performed.
Their dance moves were Martial Arts-inspired moves which they combined with some styles to create unique visual arts that excite the spectators.
"We are happy to see people appreciate what we do. They enjoyed the performance. With such a positive reaction from the people, we show them more of our skills. It motivates us further to improve our fire dance and martial arts skills. While we entertain the people, this also serves as our source of livelihood," Regin said.