City of Women
Location:Kelly-Strayhorn Theater, 5941 Penn Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15206
Date: April 16, 2012
Time: 7:30pm
Brazilian film by Lazaro Faria, about the Orixás (deities) and the roles women play in Candomble, an Afro-Brazilian religion.
In 1939, U.S. anthropologist Ruth Landes came to Bahia researching the black element in the population and was amazed at the strength and sovereignty that women from the candomblé exerted, forming a matriarchal organization. Her thought is one of the leads in this documentary, illustrated by images of popular festivities and African cults, from the famous mães de santo to the exhuberant beauty of the city of Salvador. The film presents Mãe Estela, Yalorixá from the Axé Opó Afonjá ceremonial grounds – one of the oldest and best known in Bahia – as she tells the story of candomblé and of life itself. She broaches the subject of a matriarchal society, the energy in women, and synchretism in Brazil. Finally, she talks of the future and of the hope she has in the continuity and strength of candomblé.
Mandinga em Manhattan
Location:Kelly-Strayhorn Theater, 5941 Penn Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15206
Date: April 20, 2012
Time: 7:30pm
This documentary by Lazaro Faria is about the resistance and evolution of capoeira throughout the world – it has a beginning but has no end.
Capoeira, a Brazilian martial art that is found today in more than 160 countries, has spread to every continent of the world. With shooting locations in Brazil and the USA, Mandinga em Manhattan interviews anthropologists and professors, along with the greatest capoeira masters of today, who are responsible for the hugs success of capoeira throughout the world.
