Fire dancer talks performing, what she brought to the Cavern City Renaissance Festival

CARLSBAD — Flames illuminated the night sky above the Carlsbad beach, and Shannon Newton was in her element.

She leaned back, her head tilting almost halfway to the ground as she lowered a flaming torch toward her mouth. The fire extinguished a split second after appearing to touch her tongue, creating the illusion of ingestion.

Minutes later, Newton brandished two swords, each about three feet long and doused in a flammable powder, swinging the blazing blades high over her head as onlookers cheered.

Newton’s audience gathered at the Beach Bandshell on Saturday, Sept. 27, to watch her perform the grand finale of the two-day Cavern City Renaissance Festival. It was her second year to entertain at the

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