| Carnival in Rio de Janeiro |
 |
 |
 |
|
Brazilian Carnival in Rio de Janeiro dates back to 1641 when the middle class of Rio de Janeiro adopted the Parisian practice of holding masquerade balls. Throughout the years, cultural elements from around Brazil, the Americas, and Africa have combined to create modern Brazilian Carnival. The event spans four days; beginning Saturday and culminating on Fat Tuesday. Carnival is a time to celebrate togetherness and freedom through dancing, singing, and partying all day and all night. The music played during Carnival is known as samba. It originated in Rio de Janeiro by poor Afro-Brazilians to match the rhythm of the samba dance. The mayor kicks off Carnival by crowning the Fat King, or King Momo, and offering him the key to the city.
Local samba schools spend all year planning and practicing for the Carnival finale. The finale is a parade and competition between samba schools. Samba schools are social clubs in Brazilian neighborhoods, usually in the slums, or favelas, that are known to have thousands of members. To prepare for the Carnival parade, they must pick a theme, write music and lyrics, and create costumes and floats. Only the most talented members will be chosen to participate, while the other members will help create the necessary elements for the parade. The Carnival parade in Rio takes place in Sambódromo Stadium, which was built specifically for this event. Each year, the stadium is jammed with 90,000 spectators who have come from around the world to watch the competition. The thousands of dancers and singers parade through the stadium, along with their floats, entertaining the visitors and judges. There are ten categories in which the schools are judged, including samba song, flow and spirit, and costumes. The samba school winner is announced the Friday after the Carnival parade.
Other Resources Costume ideasGeneral Info on Brazilian Carnival Ball, Bellingham, WA Brazilian Carnival Ball Flyer (114 kb, .pdf) Directions to Rumors Cabaret |