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Penn State College of Arts and Architecture
Center for the Performing Arts at Penn State

Event Slides Per Node 1415

  • A shirtless male dancer and a female dancer dressed in traditional Brazilian dress perform with Balé Folclórico da Bahia.
  • While holding a straw hat in their right hands, three male dancers—shirtless, barefoot, and wearing shorts—leap with their left legs extended forward and their right legs bent back.
  • Dancers, singers, and percussionists highlight a variety of traditional folk Brazilian dress, ornamentation, and songs during a musical number.

Balé Folclórico da Bahia
Bahia of All Colors

7:30 pm Tuesday, February 14, 2017

Based in northeastern Brazil, Balé Folclórico da Bahia performs dances rooted in Africa, Europe, and America. In Bahia of All Colors, the twenty-six-member company of dancers, musicians, and singers offers a sensual and athletic repertory of maculelê (mock-fight), capoeira (Brazilian martial art), samba, reggae, and other dances. Balé Folclórico de Bahia’s high-energy presentation includes authentic folk dances and music from the three major cultural influences on the Brazilian people: Portuguese, which arrived with sixteenth-century colonization; African, introduced through slavery; and the indigenous traditions of native Brazilians.

Formed in 1988 by Walson Botelho and Ninho Reis in Salvador, the capital of the state of Bahia, Balé Folclórico da Bahia is the only professional folk dance company in Brazil. The troupe, guided by Artistic Director José Carlos Arandiba, has earned international acclaim with tours to several continents. The company’s visit to Penn State is part of its eighth North American tour.

The company performs in traditional clothing that occasionally reveals partial nudity. Applies to the evening performance only.

Adult $38
University Park Student $15
18 and Younger $28

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sponsors
Shirley J. Coploff
Nancy S. Gamble
Lam and Lina Hood

support provided by
Penn State International Dance Ensemble Endowment

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Secondary Events on Each Event

Capoeira, Drumming, and Dance Workshop
with Members of Balé Folclórico da Bahia

7:00 pm Friday, February 10, 2017

State College Municipal Building Community Room
243 S. Allen St., State College

Free and open to the public

Cosponsored by the Center for the Performing Arts at Penn State and the Borough of State College

The public is invited to participate in a one-hour workshop featuring members of Balé Folclórico da Bahia, a folk dance and music ensemble from northeastern Brazil. Attendees can learn about a Brazilian martial art with roots in Africa, plus drumming and dancing traditions. Participants should wear comfortable clothing suitable for movement. No experience or reservation necessary. Questions? Contact Medora Ebersole, Center for the Performing Arts education and community programs manager, at 814-863-6752.

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Artistic Viewpoints

6:30 pm Tuesday, February 14, 2017

Eisenhower Auditorium

Artistic Viewpoints, an informal moderated discussion featuring Balé Folclórico da Bahia General Director Walson Botelho, is offered in Eisenhower one hour before the performance and is free for ticket holders. Artistic Viewpoints regularly fills to capacity, so seating is available on a first-arrival basis.