Xuxa Park Fire

The Xuxa Park Fire refers to a flash fire that erupted on a Brazilian TV soundstage in 2001 during taping of the children's television show "Xuxa Park". The incident is noteworthy for having been captured on videotape, for the sensationalistic press coverage that followed, and for bizarre accusations about the fire made by some detractors of the show's host.

Background

"Xuxa Park", which debuted in 1994, was a Brazilian children's TV show hosted by Latin superstar Xuxa. An actress, model and singer, she became wildly popular with young viewers through her hosting of many similar shows in both Spanish and Portuguese (plus one single-season attempt at breaking into the U.S. television market with a show in English). While hailed by many for her talents and her love of children, she has also been a controversial figure due to her having previously posed for a "Playboy" magazine centerfold and also having played a prostitute in what some categorize as a "soft porn" film. She also hosted a more adult TV show concurrent with "Xuxa Park" -- in this show ("Planeta Xuxa") she would, among other things, interview guests about their sexual habits. This history, along with the often skimpy and sexy costumes worn by her and others on her shows, as well as some rather suggestive dance choreography, has led some (particularly some strongly religious individuals) to condemn her as an inappropriate role model for children.

The show, consisting of games and musical numbers, took place on a colorful, futuristic set full of elaborate rides and props, among which was a mechanical "spaceship" through which Xuxa would normally enter the set at the start of the show, and leave at the end.

The Fire

On January 11, 2001, a taping of "Xuxa Park" was in progress on a soundstage of the Brazilian network TV Globo with a live audience of about 300 people (most of whom were children) in attendance. As Xuxa and her dancers were performing a show-closing musical number, a small fire started in the set's mechanical "spaceship" (through which Xuxa would normally have exited the stage in another 2 minutes). For a few seconds, they continued their musical number, unaware of what was happening behind them. An alert stagehand quickly appeared with a small fire extinguisher and attempted to extinguish the flames, but suddenly the fire erupted violently, engulfing the "spaceship," and he was forced to retreat as others on stage also began to flee. The fire grew and spread with astonishing intensity and speed as children, dancers, stagehands, and audience members frantically fled towards the exits to escape the heat, smoke, and melting plastic. Within less than a minute, the entire set was engulfed in flames.

Though camera operators and other technicians fled with the others, the cameras continued to operate and feed the videotape machines as the conflagration grew. The dramatic footage was shown frequently on Brazilian news shows for days after the fire.

Aftermath

Although no one died as a result of the fire (which was ultimately attributed to an electrical short circuit), many were treated for minor smoke inhalation, and four individuals were seriously injured by smoke inhalation and burns. These included Leonilson (nicknamed "Léo"), Xuxa's personal bodyguard; the show's resident clown Topetão; and two of the children. The two men were hailed as heroes by many, risking their lives to help save many of the children (including one who had become stuck in one of the on-set rides). All eventually recovered from their injuries.

Xuxa, who was not injured, nevertheless was stongly affected by the fire, and reportedly spent quite some time afterwards in a deep depression. She visited with fire victims and their families in the hospital frequently. "Xuxa Park" went on hiatus after the fire, and was ultimately cancelled. For a time, Xuxa felt unable to perform at all, especially with children. Eventually, she recovered from her malaise and returned to the public eye.

The fire was covered in a rather sensationalistic manner by the Brazilian press, especially the tabloids. The constant news coverage served to feed Xuxa's depression. She was particularly angered by the reporting of TV personality (and friend) Gugu on his show "Domingo Legal com Gugu". (They later reconciled.)

Some religious individuals who believe that Xuxa, because of her sexuality and some alleged "backwards masking" messages in her musical tracks, is in some manner aligned with Satanism, continue to this day to make bizarre assertions about the "Xuxa Park" fire. These usually take the form of insisting that the fire was deliberately "called forth" by Xuxa somehow. Some other claims are that she was performing some sort of ritual incantation at the time, or that she laughed as she fled the stage, both of which are refuted by the videotape.

The Fire as "Video Art"

In 2002, the Brazilian video art collective "The Revolution Will Not Be Broadcast" used TV footage of the "Xuxa Park" fire in a work titled "Xuxa em Chamas" ("Xuxa on Fire"). They varied the speed and frame rate of the footage, and distorted the audio. The result was described by one critic as "a powerful and cynical criticism of media news coverage."Fact|date=January 2008

External links

* [http://web.archive.org/web/20010202082800/http://babado.com.br/xuxaparkincendio.asp Various news articles (in Portuguese) archived by the Internet Archive Wayback Machine]
* [http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=8a4_1176067921 TV news reports (with extensive video footage of the fire) on liveleak.com]
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wx3wZ-yPpEQ "Xuxa em Chamas" on YouTube.com]