NEW YORK, NY: On Saturday, June 25th, 2011, New Yorkers will have a rare opportunity to see the legacy of Brazilian slavery and resistance up close at the annual Batizado (or “baptism”) celebration of the Afro-Brazilian martial art Capoeira (pronounced Capo-Wey-Da).

Internationally renowned Capoeira Professor (and Olympics Capoeira performer) Lampreia of the group Motumbaxé Capoeira will hold his semi-annual Batizado on Saturday, June 25th, from 1pm to 4pm at Edgies Teen Center / Educational Alliance, 197 East Broadway in Manhattan. The ceremony is open to the public, and suggested donation is $15.00. Tickets can be purchased at the door or in advance for $12.00 through members of Motumbaxé (pronounced Mo-Tum-Bash-Ay) Capoeira.

Professor Lampreia and other Capoiera Masters from around the world will also be holding workshops open to the public on Monday, June 20th and Wednesday, June 22nd from 8:30pm to 10:00pm at City Center Ballet Arts, 130 W 56th Street; and on Friday June 24th from 7:30 to 10:30 pm at Edgies Teen Center / the Educational Alliance. The fee is $30.00 per class; $50.00 for two; and $90.00 for 3 classes (which includes a Batizado ticket and a complementary t-shirt).

Professor Lampreia teaches regular weekly classes that are open to the public on
Mondays and Wednesdays from 8:30 to 10:30 pm and Saturdays from 7:00 to 9:00pm at
City Center Ballet Arts. The fee is $20.00 per class.

For more information about the Batizado, the workshops, or weekly classes, readers can
go to www.LampreiaCapoeira.com.

About Capoeira

Capoeira is an Afro-Brazilian martial art that combines dance, music, percussion, songs,
ritual, self-defense techniques and acrobatics. According to legend, Capoeira began over
four centuries ago, when African slaves in Brazil trained to fight under the guise of dance
in order to fool their masters. Graceful sweeps and cartwheels performed to rhythmic
drumming concealed their deadly techniques of attack, defense and trickery…and a
unique martial art emerged. Today Capoeira is part of the national cultural heritage and
one of the biggest trends in fitness, martial arts and dance today.

The Batizado is a secular, celebratory ritual of games and performance meant to bring the Capoeira community together, and to bring Afro-Brazilian culture to the greater community. New students are introduced to senior students and Mestres (Masters) from Brazil and around the world. Music, dance, humor, beauty and emotion blend together in the Batizado Roda, which is the circle in which participants play. The Batizado games embrace other Afro-Brazilian art forms as well, including Samba de Roda, Brazil’s signature circle dance, and Maculele, a traditional stick dance that mimics the movements of slicing sugar cane. Finally, the world’s greatest masters of Capoeira gather in a Mestres Roda to demonstrate the synergy of spirit and body that Capoeira becomes at its highest levels.

Joao Bispo de Souza Neto, known in the Capoeira world as Professor Lampreia has taught in South America, Europe, Africa and the United States, and was the head of the delegation that performed Capoeira during the closing ceremonies of the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.

Motumbaxé Capoeira is a group whose main objective is to promote Capoeira and Brazilian culture by bringing together people of diverse ethnicities, ages, and backgrounds.