Capoeira
Capoeira is a Brazilian martial art developed by enslaved Africans and their descendants. It combines kicks, dodges and acrobatics with music and song. It is played as a game in a circle, the roda: two players move in the centre while the others clap, sing and play instruments such as the berimbau, a musical bow with a single string.
What it is for
Section titled “What it is for”- Strength, flexibility and endurance: low movements, kicks, cartwheels and handstands.
- Coordination, balance and rhythm — the game follows the music.
- Quick reactions: reading your partner, dodging and answering.
- Music: you learn to sing, clap and play the instruments, with songs in Portuguese.
- A community: groups are often close-knit and hold events together.
Equipment
Section titled “Equipment”- Comfortable sports trousers and a T-shirt to start. Later, most groups wear white trousers (abadá) and the group’s T-shirt.
- Training is usually barefoot.
- A cord (corda) worn around the waist shows your level. Colour systems differ between groups, and many give the first cord at a ceremony called the batizado.
- Instruments — the berimbau, the pandeiro (a tambourine) and the atabaque (a drum) — are at the school.
How training goes
Section titled “How training goes”- 60–90 minutes, often with music playing.
- A warm-up, then the ginga, the basic swaying step that every movement starts from.
- Kicks, dodges, escapes and acrobatics, practised alone and then in pairs. Kicks are aimed with control, and partners usually dodge rather than block.
- Time for music: singing and playing the instruments.
- Many classes end with a roda, where students play in turns. On a first visit you learn the ginga and a few moves, and join the circle clapping.
- Styles differ: Angola is slower and closer to the ground, Regional is faster and more athletic, and many groups teach a mix of both.
Who it suits best
Section titled “Who it suits best”- People who enjoy music, movement and acrobatics as much as fighting.
- Children and teenagers with lots of energy.
- Dancers and gymnasts who want something new.
- Anybody looking for a friendly community with a cultural side.
- It is less suited to anybody who wants competition fights or quick self-defence skills — see MMA or Self-defence. Low stances, cartwheels and handstands load the wrists, shoulders and knees: with an injury, ask a doctor and tell the teacher.