Cultivating capoeira: Tensions in an Afro-Brazilian art ‘gone global’

We live in a world where differences between cultural practices are blurred due to mass migration. This has led to the hybrid fusion and adoption of different languages, beliefs and customs that are not necessarily part of our cultural heritage. For this reason, we need to think critically about popular images of traditional art forms that we see.

Capoeira, Covid and the Dance of Life

What can capoeira teach us about the Dance of Life? How can it help us adapt during hard times? Can we aim to lead more mindful, fulfilling lives by embracing the present, rather than looking to the future?

(Re-)connection in the roda

I crouch at the pé do berimbau (foot of the berimbau) next to my partner, waiting for our game to begin. The Mestra is singing a ladainha (litany) and I hear the plaintive rising and falling of her voice, full of force and emotion, keeping time with the steady rhythm of the three berimbaus. These …

Who’s your Mestre?

The most common questions I’m asked when I say I'm a capoeirista (someone who plays capoeira) are: “What group do you belong to?”, “Who’s your Mestre?” and “Angola or Regional?” Like when giving your age, nationality or job title, your affiliation to a capoeira group, teacher and style forms the essence of your identity as …

Lessons in Salvador

I can’t believe that I’m already entering my final week in Salvador. Since arriving on 1st January, I have been struggling to adapt to the heat, noise, pace of life, language, food and – most importantly – the capoeira scene. It has been a sensory and an emotional roller coaster, and I have never been …

Camino de Santiago

I’ve just returned to Bristol after walking part of the Camino Português in Portugal and Spain and am having serious withdrawal symptoms from a journey that has taught me a lot about myself. There were several reasons why I wanted to do the Camino this summer: I felt ready to embark on this spiritual journey …

St. Paul’s Carnival

Brazilians are notorious for their poor timekeeping, but on Saturday 7th July my Capoeira group Nucleo de Capoeiragem arrived 45 minutes early to take part in the procession for St. Paul’s Carnival. There had been a lot of build up to the event; the last Carnival took place 3 years ago due to ongoing difficulties …

Capoeira Summer Festival

My Capoeira group Nucleo de Capoeiragem recently had its summer festival in Bristol. It was the group’s 30th festival since its creation fifteen years ago and it was one of the most memorable festivals I have been to in the short time that I have been playing. We ended the four-day event of training, dance …

Portuguese on a plate

How to get the most authentic culinary experience abroad? Ask the locals - in their language!