School Students Learn the Art of Afro-Brazilian Martial Arts

These about Hazelwood West Middle School learn the art of Afro-Brazilian Martial Arts.

Hazelwood West Middle School seventh-grade students were in for an exotic and enriching historical treat Wednesday when the Cordão de Ouro Capoeira troupe came to perform as part of the school’s Black History Month celebrations.

Capoeira is an Afro-Brazilian art form that combines music and dance with acrobatics and martial arts. Tebogo Schultz, director of the group, said he originally learned about capoeira a video game he played in the school. When he found out it was more than a game, said he decided to learn more. In 1998, Shultz went abroad to study in Brazil, where he learned from some of the Capoeira master.

“Every culture in the world has a martial art,” he said. “We tend to forget that Africa is a diverse place with a diverse culture, and that there are still martial arts there today.”

The performance started with the players introducing the students to their instruments, which included drums, tambourines and an African string instrument. Shultz gave students a history lesson about Capoeira. The group then played a bit of music and began to demonstrate some of the more intricate Capoeira moves, individually at first and then in pairs. Students were enthralled by the performances, clapping and cheering throughout.

After the initial demonstrations, the players invited several students to try Capoeira. Once the players had given them a quick tutorial, most of the volunteers were surprisingly adept Capoeiras and participated enthusiastically.

“This is my first time doing it,” said seventh-grade student Jacob Pickett, one of the student volunteers. “It was a lot of fun…it’s great.”

Another seventh-grade student who took a shot at Capoeira, Lee Russell, seemed to be a natural during his performance with one of the players.

“I think it’s easier to know how to do it if you’re already a dancer,” Lee said. “It was a lot of fun and I may try doing it again sometime.”

Stacey McMackin, HWMS’s library media specialist and the event’s organizer, said this is just one of the many ways the school has celebrated Black History Month.

“Today’s performance is a multicultural thing that I thought the students would enjoy as part of our month-long Black History celebration,” she said. “I thought the seventh graders might really be engaged in something having to do with martial arts, too.”

She said that since many students don’t get the chance to see live arts outside of the school, it’s especially important and a personal goal of hers, to bring these performances in.

The purpose of Black History Month is to celebrate the many accomplishments of black Americans throughout history. Throughout the years, this month of celebration has served to unify Americans through learning new history, and for Shultz, Capoeira “transcends sport” by not being about competition, but rather a unifying art form that brings people together.

“Capoeira is the art of making friends,” he said.