![]() ![]() One of the challenges with samba is the sheer speed. There's a basic step pattern that takes two seconds to show someone and a lifetime to learn well, so when your feet start moving you have to fit it to that, and the timing, as you would with any dance. There is one other way to learn samba, and the way most Brasilians learn, and that is simply to play the (carnaval) samba very loud until your feet start moving. The style they teach is samba de gafieira, which is a partner version danced to similar rhythms and usually not quite so mind-bogglingly fast as carnaval samba! (which is primarily solo dance).ĭepending on how long you are in Rio for however, you might want to check out some of the casas in Centro (there's a good one near Carioca Metro but I can't remember the name offhand, it's in the street behind and parallel to Rua da Carioca.) I mention this as they tend to be a bit less formal than the Botafogo one, a bit less expensive, and you will probably find it easier to book a one-off private lesson that doesn't cost the earth. You can find it in Botafogo (quite easy to reach by Metro and not far from Copacabana). A good one is the one run by Carlinhos de Jesus, something of a Brazilian legend. (2) A place where you go to *learn* to dance is called a "house of dance" (casa de dança). ![]() In Rio, (1) a "dance school" (escola de dança) is one of the large communities that compete at carnaval, not a teaching school They don't teach dance, but you can go to one of their practice night parties to dance or soak up the atmosphere. One of the best places to learn to dance *samba* is a dance school. ![]() (If you are ever visiting just after carnaval by the way, it is a good time to buy a second-hand costume from one of the thousands of dancers.) Saara is an enormous market you can find at Uruguiana Metro station. A few in Copacabana, but many, many more in Saara, and much cheaper. There are some shops that sell bits of costume. You'll notice that samba is generally danced very upright, so it maybe helps to imagine you have a big tall heavy headdress balanced on your head! Some of the costume items require particular skills - especially the headdresses (and also the leading-lady dresses, which can be very heavy). But the costumes are for a very specific type of samba (the style danced for carnaval) and only used for performance (though it is good to practice in heels if you are a woman). Pehaps people want to pose for a photo wearing a costume? When the performances are on at Plataforma and City of Samba, you can pose with the performers for a picture and if you ask very nicely they might let you borrow a headdress for a picture a long as you are careful with it. ![]()
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