Dance Brazil prices only $10!!!

2010-03-10T17:55:00Z

DanceBrazil

Mar 23–Apr 4

Under the direction of founder and artistic director Jelon Vieira, DanceBrazil comes to The Joyce for its eleventh season to perform mesmerizing works that highlight the company's signature fusion of Capoeira, Afro-Brazilian and contemporary dance. The high-energy program includes the New York premieres of Memória and Banguela.

performance schedule
Tue–Wed 7:30pm;

Thu–Sat 8pm; Sun,

Mar 28 at 7:30pm;

Sun, Apr 4 at 2pm & 7:30pm

Dance Chat: Wed, Mar 24

ticket price

Tickets start at $10!

(Call JoyceCharge at 212-242-0800 for $10 tickets. All other tickets can purchased online)

http://dancebrazil.org/

Cipo salve Mestre Cigano axe.

2009-11-28T17:37:00Z

Some of you might ask yourselves why is emilio sending me an email about a fund raiser

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/pages/Grupo-Liberdade-de-Capoeira/84599022229?ref=nf

long story, going to try to make it short.

Most of you know me from the Pipeline Club in Newark, NJ. Some of you from school, very few others from a tiny town called Adrao, but among you there are Capoeiristas, the first one being Mestre Cigano, Robson andre ribeiro vieira. He is a person that dedicated his life to bringing Capoeira to the masses because he saw a healing process in it for humanity. It stabelizes power struggles, It stabilizes ego, it stabilizes arrogance. What does it give you?- endless qualities and capabilities, music, song, dance: elasticity, acrobatics, evasiveness in the body and most important a smile.

He has taught and performed Capoeira to mentally challenge, wheel- chair bound, special needs children; has performed Capoeira for the armed forces, schools, churches, hospitals, and fundraising events.

He became my teacher in 1991-92 and I have experienced his kindness, gentleness, and love, carried within power, compassion. The fundraiser is for medical bills. The amount is voluntary and if you just want to support by being there that's fine too. If you have a question or just want to say something reach out to me. See you later.

Capoeira Article on Wikipedia

2008-07-01T18:57:00Z

Capoeira Article on Wikipedia

Capoeira (Tupi-Guarani word for - clear area) is a blend of martial art, game, and dance originated in Brazil, from the regions known as Bahia, Pernambuco, Rio de Janeiro, Minas Gerais and São Paulo. The art-form started up in Brazil during the 16th Century, an obvious result of the slave trading that took place in conjunction with the previously slaved native Indians. Capoeira was created and developed by both the native slave Indians in Brazil and slaves brought from Africa. Participants form a roda (circle) and take turns playing instruments, singing, and sparring in pairs in the center of the circle. The game is marked by fluid acrobatic play, feints, and extensive use of groundwork, as well as sweeps, kicks, and headbutts. Less frequently-used techniques include elbow-strikes, slaps, punches, and body-throws.

History

Capoeira originated in the country of Brazil. From the 16th to the 19th centuries, slaves were brought from Africa by the Portuguese explorers to work on the Brazilian's sugar cane plantations. The main ethnic group of slaves brought to Brasil were the "bantos" - from Angola, Gulf of Guinea and Congo; "sudaneses" - from the Gulf of Guinea and Sudan; and "maleses" - from Angola and Costa da Mina.

However, the origin of the Brazilian martial arts-dance form known as Capoeira is the subject of heated debate. Brazilianists believe it was the slaves way of expressing their reaction to oppression while Africanists believe Capoeira originated in Africa and that the slaves continued their traditions after being transported to Brazil. Some sources provide evidence of a ritual fight/dance called N'golo from Southern Angola as proof that it did exist in martial form before it reached Brazil. According to Talmon-Chvaicer (2008), "Another theory suggests that it was based on a contemporary war dance, the n'golo (the zebra dance), performed during the Efundula, a puberty rite for girls of Mucope, Muxilenge, and Muhumbe tribes of southern Angola. (Talmon-Chvacier, 2008, p.19). .

Another combat dance is Danymé (also called Ladja), from the Caribbean island of Martinique. As in the Brazilian form, there is a ring of spectators, and each contestant enters the circle, moving in a counterclockwise direction and dancing toward the drummers. This move, called Kouwi Lawon, or "Circular Run" in creole, is an exact parallel to the capoeira interlude called dá volta ao mundo, or "take a turn around the world." Once the Danmyé begins, the contestants' movements are mirrored in the music. Some examples of danmyé drumming were recorded by Alan Lomax in the early 1960s.

In Cuba, with its wealth of Kongo-inspiried music and dance, there was a mock-combat dance called Mani. It was performed to the sound of yuka drums, the precursors of modern conga drums and rumba. A dancer (manisero) would stand in the middle of a ring of spectator-participants, and moving to the sound of the songs and drums, would attempt to knock down someone in the circle. Some of the manisero's moves and kicks were comparable to those of Brazilian capoeira, including its basic leg-sweep (rasteira), which also occurs in samba duro, a dance found in Salvador. Exactly as in Martinique, the Cuban master drummer's patterns would mirror the contestants' actions, and supply accents to accompany certain blows. Some of these forms are known only to a handful of ethnographers and none has taken root the way capoeira has in Brazil.

In addition to the ring form and basic movement patterns, what makes all these genres African-based is that the mock-combat is coordinated with a percussive musical accompaniment. Many African dances are war dances and some say Capoeira can be referred to as a war dance too. Slaves in Brazil definitely added to the martial qualities of the game for Capoeira to become a weapon but the dance qualities were never disregarded or lost. It was also used as a disguise when officials came upon capoeiristas practicing their art.

One theory is that capoeira originated amongst the Afro-Brazilians in the "Senzalas", the living quarters for the slaves on Brazilian plantations. Others believe that capoeira was practiced and used to fend off attacks by Portuguese slavers in Palmares, Brazil's most infamous Quilombo maroon colony of escaped slaves. There is no historical evidence to support any of these claims; many written documents regarding slavery in Brasil were burned when the first government of the new Republic was established. There is, however, evidence and agreement that Capoeira is aesthetically and philosophically an Afro-Brazilian art form.

The most acceptable claim is that slaves developed the art based on traditional African dances and rituals in the work free hours left to them, thus training both mind and body for combat situations. As the slave-masters forbade any kind of martial art, it was cloaked in the guise of an innocent-looking recreational dance. In the 16th century, escaped-slaves founded a number of "Quilombos" , in which the art of Capoeira was further perfected. Many escaped-slaves, before they could reach the Quilombos, were captured by the Capitães-do-mato that ironically were sometimes African decedents or mulatos themselves. The "Capitães-do-mato" were hired by the Portuguese slavers and usually worked on their own. The inhabitants of Palmares, the largest of the Quilombos, lasted 65 years. The "Quilombo dos Palmares" was located in what is today's state of Alagoas, northeast Brazil. Its population was composed not only of escaped African slaves but also of native Brazilian Indians and other mixed races(Mestiços). It had an organized government system similar to an African Kingdom with a King and his Assembly. The best warriors on battles were chosen King; "Zumbi" was the most known King of all. The "Quilombo dos Palmares" fought for many years and was finally destroyed in 1694 by Domingos Jorge Velho and his troops. "Zumbi" managed to escape and many believed that he was immortal. Wanted by the authorities, he was captured on November 20th, 1695. He was killed and beheaded on the spot. His head was brought to a public Plaza at the "vila do Recife". "Zumbi" was considered a national hero and warrior, a symbol of liberty ; his name became a Capoeira legend. Capoeira was used not only in direct combat, it also inspired the battle strategy itself; feigning retreat, thus luring the over-confident enemy into remote territories only to strike back at an unsuspecting place and time.

During the "Paraguai War" (1864 to 1870), many capoeiristas were sent to battle in the front line. The official prohibition of Capoeira remained even after slavery was abolished in May 13th, 1888. In 1890, Brazilian president "Marechal Deodoro da Fonseca" signed an act that prohibited the practice of capoeira nationwide, with severe punishment for those caught. It was nevertheless practiced by the poorer population on public holidays, during work-free hours and similar occasions. Riots, caused also by police interference, were common. Persecution and punishment were almost successful in eradicating Capoeira from the "streets" of Brasil by the 1920s. In spite of the ban, Master Bimba (Manuel dos Reis Machado) created a new style, the "Capoeira Regional" (as opposed to the traditional "Capoeira Angola" of Mestre Pastinha). He incorporated new moves and techniques from "Batuque", a martial art that he learned from his father (the unified champion); The "Capoeira Regional" or "Luta Regional Baiana" was than a more effective and efficient style of capoeira. Mestre Bimba was finally successful in convincing the authorities of the cultural value of Capoeira, thus ending the official ban in the 1930s. Mestre Bimba founded the first Capoeira school in 1932, the "Academia-escola de Capoeira Regional", at the Engenho de Brotas in Salvador-Bahia. He was than considered "the father of modern capoeira". In 1937, he earned the state board of education certificate. In 1942, Mestre Bimba opened his second school at the "Terreiro de Jesus - rua das Laranjeiras"; today rua Francisco Muniz Barreto, #1. The school is open until today and supervised by his ex student, "Vermelho-27". He also taught capoeira to the army and at the police academy. Mestre Bimba was born on November 23rd, 1900, at the "bairro do Engenho Velho" in Salvador-BA. The son of Luiz Cândido Machado and Maria Martinha do Bonfim, Mestre Bimba started capoeira at the age of 12. He was taught by "Bentinho", an African that used to be the "capitão da Companhia Baiana de Navegação". Master Bimba was a coal man, carpenter, warehouse man, longshoreman, horse coach conductor, but mainly capoeirista; a giant with strong personality! He died on February 15th, 1974 at the "Hospital das Clínicas de Goiânia", due to a stroke. Capoeira progressed from an illegal art to become a national sport in Brasil. It is also growing its popularity worldwide. There have been comparisons drawn between the Afro-North American art form of the blues and Capoeira. Both were practiced and developed by Afro-American slaves, both retained distinctive African aesthetics and cultural qualities; both were shunned and looked-down upon by the larger Brazilian and North American societies within which they developed, and both fostered a deep sense of Afrocentric pride especially amongst poorer and darker skinned Blacks.In the mid-1970s, when masters of the art form - mestre capoeiristas, began to emigrate and teach Capoeira in the United States, it was still primarily practiced amongst the poorest and Blackest of Brazilians. With its emigration to the U.S., however, much of the stigma with which it was historically associated in Brazil was shed. Today there are many capoeira schools all over the world (Capoeira is gaining ground in Japan) and throughout the United States, and with its growing popularity in the U.S. it has attracted a broad spectrum of multicultural, multiracial students. In New York City particularly, Capoeira schools have attracted a representative array of students from White, Asian, Caribbean, Hispanic and Black North American segments of New York's diverse population. While the present demographics of Capoeira students in New York has developed into a multicultural, multiracial base, the demographics of masters has largely remained Brazilian and the philosophy of capoeira has retained its Afrocentric focus.

CapoeiraNJ Blog

Dance Brazil prices only $10!!!

DanceBrazil

Tickets start at $10!

Cipo salve Mestre Cigano axe.

Capoeira Article on Wikipedia