Soul-stirring live music, the thrilling martial art of capoeira, and electrifying dance come together in DanceBrazil's spirited performances. Brazil's rhythm and color, energy and pulse are brought to the stage with this gravity-defying company of eight dancers, seven musicians and six capoeiristas, who are skilled in the rhythmic leaps, high kicks and balancing poses of the martial art form.
Under the artistic direction of Jelon Vieira, DanceBrazil has captivated audiences around the country with the vibrant movements of the martial art capoeira, an Afro-Brazilian art form that synthesizes rhythmic music with dance, acrobatics, attack and defense. TIME magazine has called it "martial art with an African beat."
Capoeira is thought to have developed as a means of self-defense in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries by slaves brought to Brazil by the Portuguese. Slaves were not allowed to practice the martial art, so they disguised the form as a dance. When you watch capoeira, two men typically move toward each other with fluid, low-to-the-ground movements, pulsating to musical beats. The capoeira circle is usually accompanied by someone playing the birimbau, a tall slender instrument made from a wooden stick, string and a gourd. Drums and tambourines are also used in call-and-response songs.
DanceBrazil was founded by Jelon Vieira in 1977. Vieira came to the United States in 1975, speaking no English and knowing no one. The company evolved from a series of grass-roots workshops at the Clark Center for the Arts in New York City. Alvin Ailey joined the board of directors in 1980 and helped focus the objectives of DanceBrazil, emphasizing the company's ability to speak to a broad North American community. Soon after, the Capoeira Foundation was founded and within a few years, DanceBrazil premiered at Lincoln Center's Avery Hall. The company has now been performing for over 25 years, touring Europe, Asia, Brazil and the U.S.
Vieira has also worked with many major American dance companies and cultural institutions. CityLore, a New York City community organization, honored him for his lifetime contribution to New York culture, and he received an award from the Brazilian Cultural Center in New York for being the "pioneer of capoeira in the U.S." He has taught capoeira to film stars Wesley Snipes and Eddie Murphy, has been a guest master teacher at Yale, Columbia, Princeton and Stanford Universities and lists the films "Brenda Starr," "Rooftops" and "Boomerang" among his choreography credits. When at home in Brazil, he teaches children and young adults in Boca do Rio, using capoeira to build discipline and self-esteem and help young people become a vital part of society.
DanceBrazil's performance will be presented on Tuesday, January 23 at 7:30pm in the Rose Lehrman Arts Center. Tickets are SOLD-OUT.