Événement

Chico Simões's Mamulengo Puppets with Minas Music

Please join us for a very special evening of performance and music from Brazil.

Mamulengo is a puppet tradition from northeastern Brazil that took shape during the colonial era. It is connectied to European puppet genres and weaves in African and indigenous elements to make a thoroughly Brazilian art form. Among its primary characters is the trickster figure Benedito the Vaquiero, a cowboy, who bests a series of opponents, from the mythological bull Bumba-meu-boi to human adversaries who just might symbolize the forces arrayed against common people throughout history. He directs the cultural center Ponto de Cultura Invenção Brasileira in Taguatinga, which works with the mestres of the regions traditions to mobilize the arts for social change. Chico Simões began studying mamulengo in 1981 from mestres (master puppeteers) in the Brazilian countryside where the tradition is still practiced, and founded his own puppet theater, the Mamulengo Presepada, in 1985.

Minas takes Brazilian and American roots to create a sound that is fresh and innovative, from ballads tinged with melancholic traits of Blues and Choro, to Folk coasting on the subtle coolness of a Bossa Nova pulse, to upbeat Sambas elaborated with instrumental jazz improvisation, scat singing and whimsical whistling. Minas original sound is defined by the unique blend between Orlando and Patricia Haddads vocals and the interaction of classical guitar and cool jazz piano. They capture the essence of great songwriting with memorable melodies, inventive harmonies, and poetic lyrics. The music of Minas is engaging and timeless. Orlando created and directed PhilaSambra the first street samba school in Philadelphia, in 1986. It created community opportunities to bring people together in the positive setting of uplifting Brazilian music making.