Viva Capoeira

Capoeira is a collective art form that brings together dance, music, acrobatics and martial arts. Created more than four centuries ago by African slaves and natives in Brazil in their struggle for freedom and survival, Capoeira was illegal to practice until the 1930’s. However, since then it has acquired enormous popularity among people of all ages and backgrounds in Brazil and throughout the world. Capoeira became the national sport of Brazil in 1972. Practiced in a communal setting, within a circle of players or “roda”, and set to a hypnotic, pulsing rhythm, Capoeira calls for intuition, skill, grace and physical strength.

In Capoeira two players, known as Capoeiristas, play a game, called a jogo, in a circular ring, called a roda. They move in a freestyle stance, called a ginga, to the rhythm of music that is being performed. People play instruments, clap and sing as part of the game. The instruments include a berimbau, a one stringed bow shaped instrument with a gourd attached to one end to give resonance, a drum, called an atabaque, and a pandeiro, a tambourine. Capoeiristas also use sweeps, trips, takedowns and various acrobatic movements. These moves emphasize attacking (ataque), counterattacking (contragolpe), defending (defesa), and escaping (esquiva). It is highly acrobatic and energetic.

Mestrando Índio has dedicated his life to learning and teaching Capoeira. He is a one cord away from becoming a Mestre, the highest level and a three-time Brazilian champion in Capoeira (1988, 1989 and 1990). Índio’s involvement in Capoeira encompasses teaching children on the streets of Brazil to invitations to teach adults in the University of California in Santa Cruz, USA. In 1993, he founded the Acre Capoeira Federation and the Capoeira Central Association. Índio has been serving as the elected President of the Capoeira Central Association (CCA) since its formation.