What do you get when you combine martial arts, dance, acrobatics and music?
What do you get when you combine martial arts, dance, acrobatics and music?
An interactive game of Brazilian performance art called capoeira. Created more than 400 years ago by African slaves in Brazil, capoeira incorporates the power of human speed and leverage to create quick, complex moves that include a variety of spins and kicks in a display of human mobility.
“No one knows exactly when it was started, but it’s believed sometime in the 1600s,” said Mario “Castanho” Hill, a local teacher and practitioner. “It was a pastime that was practiced in the slave quarters and later moved to the cities where it became an illegal practice. It wasn’t until the 20th century that capoeira became legal and was seen as an acceptable practice. Today, it’s found all over the world.”
Hill, an 11-year practitioner of capoeira, offers classes for both children and adults in Hawi, Waimea and Honokaa. Students learn numerous skills including attacks, escapes, acrobatics, strength and conditioning, songs in Brazilian-Portuguese, history and self-confidence. It doesn’t take much to enjoy, and become passionate about capoeira. Its aesthetics are easily appreciated, as well as the art form’s power and depth.
“Capoeira is a unique art form,” said Hill. “Besides being a marital art, it’s also a dance. We play music, we sing songs, we do acrobatics. We create a community that’s very unique. You get a great physical work out and get to learn about the history of capoeira.”
At its inception, it is believed that practitioners disguised the art form as a dance or a game, in an attempt to conceal its more lethal martial arts and self-defense techniques. And while the martial art component is still present, and still disguised, current practitioners often use trickery to disguise an attack as a friendly gesture.
Today, capoeira shares this aspect of Brazilian culture worldwide. Found on every continent, capoeira attracts thousands of students to Brazil each year to learn Portuguese, and increase their understanding of the art form. Most modern-day capoeira performances are more theatrical and acrobatic than martial arts.
Most capoeira schools encourage students to be open-minded and flexible regarding play and behavior, believing that a rigid approach undermines the fundamental characteristics of capoeira, which is freedom of individuality and self-expression. The study of capoeira requires conscientiousness and a commitment beyond just practice, to a broader understanding of the art form’s cultural and historical beginnings.
“There’s a lot of physical benefits to capoeira too, such as eye-hand coordination, getting in shape, the cardio and stretching,” said Hill. “Just moving your body in a way that you’re not used to doing is good for you. You really have to find out what your balance point is, and move in a creative way. It’s also more than just being physical. Capoeira is a form of expression, like dance. You’re expressing yourself.”
But to really understand capoeira, you need to experience it first hand, he said.
“Capoeira is a very dynamic art form. Besides learning the martial arts type of movements, you also learn how to play musical instruments, and songs. We’ve really developed a community of people — a camaraderie.” Hill said.
Info: (916) 752-7275 or email Hill at capoeira_waimea@yahoo.com.