2008 Woodie Awards
Stocker Arts Center Presents DanceBrazil
Catherine Hyland
Issue date: 3/10/08 Section: Arts
The Lorain County Community College Stocker Arts Center will be presenting the performing artists of DanceBrazil on Tuesday, March 18th at 7:30 p.m.
Founded in 1975 by Artistic Director and choreographer, Jelon Vieira, DanceBrazil is a company that offers a cultural experience by incorporating the dances of traditional and contemporary Afro-Brazilian dance, samba, modern dance, and the martial arts form of Capoeira in their performance. Vieira is also the founder and Artistic Director of The Capoeira Foundation. Capoiera has become very popular and can be seen in dance movements used in hip-hop and modern dances. To see what Capoeira looks like, go to http://www.reels4artists.com/html/capoeira.html to watch the clip shown.
When talking about Capoeira, the Executive Director, Margaret Wood said, "Capoeira came out of slavery in Brazil. There was more slavery in Brazil than in America." She said, "Vieira put a lot of Brazilian culture into the dance."
There are 16 performers, primarily men, in the group, including 4 musicians, all of which are from Bahia, Brazil. The performers start several months ahead rehearsing and the rehearsals last 6 to 8 hours. She also said that a "great deal" goes into the planning and traveling.
Wood talked about the upcoming performance at Lorain County Community College and said, "That is going to be the world premiere" of this particular performance. She also commented on the music. "The music is all written originally for this specific dance performance," said Wood.
They have performed around the United States, Europe, Asia, and Brazil and appeared in PBS programs. Viera is not only the choreographer for the group, but was also one of the solo performers and has choreographed in the movies, "Brenda Starr," "Rooftops," and "Boomerang." He was chosen to develop the only Brazilian dance performance for a globally televised, 24-hour dance marathon held at Times Square in New York City in 2000. Vieira has taught the art of Capoiera to celebrities such as Wesley Snipes and Eddie Murphy and has been a master teacher at IV League schools including Yale, Columbia, Princeton, Stanford, and Oberlin College.
This performance shows through its dance, the culture of part of the world that is rarely seen or celebrated. Brazilian culture has affected our society by influencing our style of dance.
Tickets are $34 for the Orchestra Section seats and $27 for the Mezzanine Section seats. To order tickets or for questions, call the Stocker Arts Center Box Office open from noon to 6:00 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, at (800) 955-5222 ext. 4040 or (440) 366-4040. Order tickets online by going to http:/www.lorainccc.edu/stocker and click the "Buy Stocker Event Tickets" icon to place an order.
Special thanks to Ashley Voisinet and Mary Flores for contributing to this story
Founded in 1975 by Artistic Director and choreographer, Jelon Vieira, DanceBrazil is a company that offers a cultural experience by incorporating the dances of traditional and contemporary Afro-Brazilian dance, samba, modern dance, and the martial arts form of Capoeira in their performance. Vieira is also the founder and Artistic Director of The Capoeira Foundation. Capoiera has become very popular and can be seen in dance movements used in hip-hop and modern dances. To see what Capoeira looks like, go to http://www.reels4artists.com/html/capoeira.html to watch the clip shown.
When talking about Capoeira, the Executive Director, Margaret Wood said, "Capoeira came out of slavery in Brazil. There was more slavery in Brazil than in America." She said, "Vieira put a lot of Brazilian culture into the dance."
There are 16 performers, primarily men, in the group, including 4 musicians, all of which are from Bahia, Brazil. The performers start several months ahead rehearsing and the rehearsals last 6 to 8 hours. She also said that a "great deal" goes into the planning and traveling.
Wood talked about the upcoming performance at Lorain County Community College and said, "That is going to be the world premiere" of this particular performance. She also commented on the music. "The music is all written originally for this specific dance performance," said Wood.
They have performed around the United States, Europe, Asia, and Brazil and appeared in PBS programs. Viera is not only the choreographer for the group, but was also one of the solo performers and has choreographed in the movies, "Brenda Starr," "Rooftops," and "Boomerang." He was chosen to develop the only Brazilian dance performance for a globally televised, 24-hour dance marathon held at Times Square in New York City in 2000. Vieira has taught the art of Capoiera to celebrities such as Wesley Snipes and Eddie Murphy and has been a master teacher at IV League schools including Yale, Columbia, Princeton, Stanford, and Oberlin College.
This performance shows through its dance, the culture of part of the world that is rarely seen or celebrated. Brazilian culture has affected our society by influencing our style of dance.
Tickets are $34 for the Orchestra Section seats and $27 for the Mezzanine Section seats. To order tickets or for questions, call the Stocker Arts Center Box Office open from noon to 6:00 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, at (800) 955-5222 ext. 4040 or (440) 366-4040. Order tickets online by going to http:/www.lorainccc.edu/stocker and click the "Buy Stocker Event Tickets" icon to place an order.
Special thanks to Ashley Voisinet and Mary Flores for contributing to this story
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