CAPOEIRA

Level: Beginner & Advanced
For schedule of classes: click here

THE ART OF CAPOEIRA:

Capoeira is a fluid series of agile, acrobatic, and martial movements linked together to form a unique and organic game. The graceful physical dialogue happens in the RODA, the circle where training manifests into strategic games between two players. These “games” are an intricate exchange of circular and straight kicks, escapes, sweeps, takedowns, and gymnastic flourishes.

Capoeira began as means of clandestine communication, self-empowerment and cultural liberation for enslaved Africans. Throughout the last two centuries it has evolved into an urban phenomenon and way of life. Today Capoeira is everywhere; you see its legacy in the fitness industry, youth programs, college campuses, artist communities, in print, television, and film.

THE ROOTS OF CAPOEIRA:

The art of Capoeira began its development over 500 years ago during the South American slave trade in Brasil. The fusion of African and indigenous cultures during the colonial period produced the perfect climate for the development this unique and complex art form. Africans, stripped of their freedom and tribal identity, meshed the music, culture, and traditions of their diverse tribes, creating a new and distinctive Afro-Brazilian identity. Capoeira was a fundamental element of their lives in the New World.
For hundreds of years Capoeira was outlawed, considered an unsavory and vulgar practice by the oppressive ruling elite. Practitioners of the art were marginalized and if caught, imprisoned. Despite the criminalization of the art, Capoeiristas continued to meet and train in secret.

In the 1930s a forward looking Capoeirista and champion pugilist name Manoel dos Reis Machado better known as MESTRE BIMBA, initiated a pivotal new era in the art of Capoeira. He developed a more objective style, precise training sequences, and innovative techniques; a new genre of Capoeira was being born. Mestre Bimba took primitive Capoeira, today commonly referred to as Capoeira Angola, elements of an African leg-strike dance called Batuque, and concepts from various martial arts and created what is now known as Capoeira Regional. Because of his tireless work, Capoeira was removed from the penal code in 1937.

Through the work of Mestre Bimba, his Capoeira disciples and other influential mestres and Capoeira groups, the art has spread and evolved into an international sport and cultural phenomenon. Today Capoeira is popular with millions of kids, teenagers, and adults across six continents.

THE ORGANIZATION:

Capoeira Brasil is an international cultural organization, dedicated to the preservation and evolution of the art of Capoeira. Founded in 1989 in Rio de Janeiro, the group has contributed immensely to the worldwide growth of Capoeira, introducing the art to millions of people. Capoeira Brasil, with schools in over 25 countries spanning six continents, is an ambassador of Brazilian culture and an innovator in the art of Capoeira.

The founding mestres of Capoeira Brasil, M. Boneco, M. Paulinho Sabia, and M. Paulão, come from a strong lineage and powerful tradition of teachers leading back to Mestre Bimba. All three were long time members of one of the oldest and most revered Capoeira groups, Senzala, and trained under the innovative Mestre Camisa.

INSTRUCTORA PAVAO:

Jessica Carla de Lima-Moran AKA “Pavão,” has been a Capoeirista for 10 years, training and teaching under world-renowned Capoeira master, Mestre Boneco of CBLA. Instrutora Pavão teaches at the CBLA headquarters in Mid-City, at Eagle Rock’s XTC Training Center, and is a part-time faculty member at Cal State Los Angeles where she teaches Capoeira in the Kinesiology Department. In addition to teaching and performing with CBLA, she is the group’s event coordinator, communications director, and writes about the art regularly. With her husband and teaching partner, Instrutor Chegado, she has written an educational play about Capoeira and is currently developing a gang prevention program, and other Capoeira related youth projects.
Instrutora Pavão has a BA in English from UC Berkeley and will begin pursuing a Masters Degree in 2009.

INSTRUTOR CHEGADO:

Sean Anthony Moran AKA “Chegado,” has been involved in the Capoeira community for 10 years. He trains and teaches under the guidance of world-renowned master, Mestre Boneco of CBLA. Instrutor Chegado travels and performs regularly with CBLA, is the group’s production manager, and teaches locally at the XTC Training Center in Eagle Rock and at the CBLA headquarters in Mid-City. In addition to Capoeira, Sean is also a classically trained actor, veteran of Will & Company, a multicultural Shakespearean theatre group and a touring facilitator for Playfair Inc.

Instrutor Chegado is a graduate of the American Academy and has worked on many TV, commercial and film projects as both an actor, stuntman, and stunt choreographer. His latest big screen project is as Lit. Fike in James Cameron’s 2009 release, “Avatar.”