Woman travels world as archer shooting flaming arrows with her feet

By Kane Hunt via SWNS

Meet the woman who is traveling the world performing as an archer - shooting a flaming bow and arrow with her FEET.

Orissa Kelly, 28, began learning gymnastics at the age of three - advancing to performing circus acts and stunts in her teenage years.

She honed her skills on aerial hoops hanging from ceilings, but still wanted to push herself further.

So she kept trying new things - until she discovered a bow and arrow.

Orissa, from Watford, Herts., England, said: "Out of every weapon I’ve ever worked with, archery bows just felt the coolest.

"At one point I even tried doing a handstand with a sword! It definitely wasn’t the best idea!"

"I wanted to be so different that no one else could even compare to me - so I came up with an act that no one else was doing.

"When I left school, I knew I wanted to perform and I gave it my all, I never got a second job or had a plan B.

"I’ve never had any other job than being a performer.

"I’ve never handed in a CV, never attended an interview and only found out what HR was a few years ago.

“I’ve performed on every continent in the world and have seen some amazing places and also a lot of really crazy places too.

“I get to see these extravagant lives and stay in cool villas in the Maldives but then I get to come home back to my loving family, so it’s the best of both worlds."

Orissa visited a local hunting shop in February 2015 and purchased a bow and arrow, with the motive of creating an act that no one else had done before.

She said: "I loved action films, and was always obsessed with 'Mulan' or 'Kill Bill.'

"I remember watching them and thinking, what if these cool stunts were actually real, and I think this is where I really got the inspiration from."

Alongside a bow, she also tried wielding various other weapons including swords, but found archery to be her calling.

She started practicing foot archery for six hours a day for six months in an open cricket field - braving all types of weather.

She said: "I learnt to shoot with my feet before I could shoot with my hands.

"I still consider myself more accurate with my feet.

Orissa said her training was sometimes "excruciating."

She said: "My most common injury was from the bow string on my calf, the string would repeatedly hit it, causing it to bruise, swell, and bleed.

"I would also get cuts and bruises in between my toes from gripping the bow with my feet.

"The worst pain was actually from the cramps in my feet through - this is something I still get if I take some time off of foot archery. It’s my body’s way of telling me I’m not training enough."

And she added: “Sometimes my toes would go numb so I would go back to my car and sit in front of the heater for 10 minutes before going back out again."

But her persistence paid off with Orissa going on to compete on "Britain’s Got Talent" in 2016 - where she was described as “brilliant” by judge Alesha Dixon.

Orissa then went to compete on the MTV show ‘Amazingness’ in 2018 - which she won and brought home a $10,000 cash prize.

She was also invited to join circus group the Cirque Du Hilarious big top circus show in Newcastle for six weeks, where she lived in a caravan and performed her staple routine for an amazed audience.

In 2020 she moved to Nashville, Tennessee, after demonstrating her talents in another competition - the "Go-Big Show."

Orissa said: “That time, moving to America, coming on TikTok and working on my social media completely evolved my career.”

Orissa now travels all around the globe showcasing her talents - visiting her favorite places, including South Africa, Nigeria, and Guatemala - performing for an expanding list of wealthy clients.

She said: "Now I work mostly for the super wealthy.

"I’m grateful to say I earn up to six figures doing my job.

"I’m my own manager, booking every event myself so it’s empowering to show others that you can earn a good living in the arts.

"My typical audience really varies, but every now and then I’ll surprise my fans with a free show.

"Last month I was able to donate a show for a low income school in Bangladesh.

"I do this in hope to inspire those around the world that any dream, no matter how crazy or unusual, is possible".

Alongside all of the crazy work that she had done, Orissa has even tackled the movie industry, after appearing as stunt performer in the Hollywood blockbuster, "Wonder Woman."

"I’ve done specialist stunts on a variety of films and tv series throughout my career, including Wonder Woman, It’s always really fun to be on set!

"My brother is a stunt man/fight coordinator, so it’s really cool to get a glimpse into his world".

She splits her downtime between the US and the UK.

"I like to say home is where my mum is, so no matter how much I travel, home will always be Watford," she said.

She describes her typical day as waking up around 5.30am before spending three to four hours sorting out admin for her work before training for at least six hours.

Orissa said: “People tend to just think, 'oh she’s an acrobat, she must just go on stage and perform'.

"When actually around 70 per cent of the job is marketing, branding yourself, managing social media, running a website and more.

“It’s a passion so it doesn’t feel like work - it just feels so natural.”