Capoeira
The Afro-Brazilian art of dance, acrobatics and fight, played in a circle to music.
Also: roda
Capoeira is an Afro-Brazilian art that combines martial arts, dance, acrobatics and music. Players, called capoeiristas, form a circle, the roda, around two who play, kicking, swaying and flipping without contact, to the rhythm of a berimbau, a one-string bow, drums and clapping, and songs in call and response. It was developed by enslaved Africans in Brazil, who disguised combat as dance, and was long outlawed. Today it is a national symbol, taught around the world, and UNESCO lists the roda as heritage. Students progress through levels shown by coloured cords, and mestres, the masters, are honoured for their knowledge.
Region: Latin America and the Caribbean